tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23400570086757520222024-02-07T22:23:56.986-08:00Springer and TysonSpringer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.comBlogger92125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-27889263651033933892012-02-06T20:12:00.000-08:002012-02-10T20:17:16.000-08:00It's the End of the World As We Know It<span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">. . . or so the Mayan's say . . .</span><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378084"><br /><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081"></span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780197"><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">January has actually been a relatively uneventful month. Tyson and I just worked away. It has been kind of exciting to have Tyson begin doing his wedding photography on his own. This past month he had three engagement photo shoots and two bridal shoots. </span><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">January is the quiet before the storm at Creative Arts, and I just subbed a few extra ballet classes, and helped make some props.</span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780403"><br /><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081"></span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780404"><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">Tyson's best friend, Chris, was in town for the first few weeks of January, so we went down to his brother's house in Salt Lake about three times a week during that time. We had a lot of fun playing games and holding Chris's new (born in December) niece Hattie. :)<br /></span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780299"><br /><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081"></span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780300"><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">Near the beginning of the month, blackberries went on sale for a really good price, so we bought several packages, and I tried out two new recipes: blackberry swirl pound cake, and blackberry crumble bars. Both were really good, and are definitely keepers! :)<br /><br /></span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780198"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiNMkjHv39tr2qA1dGOwgA39mD6og4D-0EAm9ltPUZgz0M1K5pVE2SZhjIF7NHahZTzb6O9Kd3qWaD3LUOXlzoESC6ugvrANoABzagQCTnXbpHW4bDmFOX_wVK1u3bNg_N1HbIX7oSbfFb/s1600/IMG_3151.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiNMkjHv39tr2qA1dGOwgA39mD6og4D-0EAm9ltPUZgz0M1K5pVE2SZhjIF7NHahZTzb6O9Kd3qWaD3LUOXlzoESC6ugvrANoABzagQCTnXbpHW4bDmFOX_wVK1u3bNg_N1HbIX7oSbfFb/s400/IMG_3151.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707726707743371346" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl47sSJpphZBD4dCga5BuEwsg44VkAVG_UTbfUkUGnoD71LEtlOvo0hFKq96o1xmrd9pzb3lfgWpDDTGANBi8BTRnEXJawuF7gbUu0nUg2A-P4ZK1s7FFqDa2XW3V_b5MgyFIe6RQcgCzS/s1600/IMG_3156.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl47sSJpphZBD4dCga5BuEwsg44VkAVG_UTbfUkUGnoD71LEtlOvo0hFKq96o1xmrd9pzb3lfgWpDDTGANBi8BTRnEXJawuF7gbUu0nUg2A-P4ZK1s7FFqDa2XW3V_b5MgyFIe6RQcgCzS/s400/IMG_3156.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707726713093713042" border="0" /></a><br /><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081"></span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780199"><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">The most exciting part of January for me was making Remick's birthday cake. :) He requested a chocolate cake shaped like Leonardo's (TMNT) head. Well, 1) I was pretty sure I couldn't yet carve a cake 3-dimensionally, and 2) if I couldn't do that, it sounded like kind of a boring cake. So, after much thought and some last-minute good luck, I was able to make Rem a cake that looked like Leonardo's whole body (including swords, thank you). It turned out way better than I thought it would, and I am still really happy about it! I even used light green frosting with green frosting gel between layers to be "the secret of the ooze." :D<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjafQhkf51bOXXuTkBad74qpE2aSzCJHMgoAY-Kxw7oyR_on12ZQFguSiJu5-9PXM6pB80mMil6FmegWL8lKGTGr5w7JSnz0TmXnz0FxBMcxu_CB7Vf9Mm2Po0j2x5P_d9CXWKT8PS-xAJt/s1600/IMG_3173.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjafQhkf51bOXXuTkBad74qpE2aSzCJHMgoAY-Kxw7oyR_on12ZQFguSiJu5-9PXM6pB80mMil6FmegWL8lKGTGr5w7JSnz0TmXnz0FxBMcxu_CB7Vf9Mm2Po0j2x5P_d9CXWKT8PS-xAJt/s400/IMG_3173.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707726717485255938" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780311"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp-eN5tAsMU_Hf99iL8aU8c3Vo4Z1K90qh_kkhewQvzZmU9hQ9zxq_ctcr7-T-5bGT-1tyBtuCEG3xFqLvD9AhZ3fC4DRO4yxjquDv1kdkks1onBMFZpGxUFmJ8It4-JICFEFLFsaW9kaH/s1600/IMG_3182.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp-eN5tAsMU_Hf99iL8aU8c3Vo4Z1K90qh_kkhewQvzZmU9hQ9zxq_ctcr7-T-5bGT-1tyBtuCEG3xFqLvD9AhZ3fC4DRO4yxjquDv1kdkks1onBMFZpGxUFmJ8It4-JICFEFLFsaW9kaH/s400/IMG_3182.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707726732529858834" border="0" /></a><br /><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081"></span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780312"><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">We had Rem and Amelia over for his birthday on the 22nd, and ate homemade pizza and breadsticks for dinner. After dinner we played Scattergories, then finally opened and played Castle Keep! It was really fun! And then, of course, we ate Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle for dessert. :D</span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780357"><br /><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081"></span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780358"><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">On the 29th, we went down to Spanish Fork to celebrate Parker's 21st birthday. We had a yummy dinner, and then all four brothers played Dominion together. And afterwards we ate cake and opened presents. It was good to see everyone and hang out together again. :)</span></div><div id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_1328563153780389"><br /><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081"></span></div><span id="yiv830807843yui_3_2_0_17_132856315378081">Aaaand that's it!</span>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-65128473687395385402012-01-01T20:06:00.000-08:002012-02-10T20:11:02.166-08:00It's Been a Long December<span><span style="font-style: italic;">and there's reason to believe maybe this year will be better than the last. :)</span><br /></span><div style="font-style:italic;"><span><br /></span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>It's been another whirlwind month here in Bountiful. :)</span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>Our ward Christmas party was Friday the 9th. After work that afternoon I came home and baked five pounds of potatoes, then walked to the ward building to set up decorations. I drastically underestimated the amount of candy needed to scatter across the tables, but Brother Maynard came to my rescue and went to the store to get more. By the time everything was set up, pretty much everyone had already arrived, and I hadn't showered after teaching! Bleh! So I drove home (Tyson had come when he got home from work), and showered and changed and went back. The evening was really great, with an awesome highschool choir, a movie guessing game with the ward presidencies, Christmas songs, and a message from our bishopric. :)</span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>The next day I finished baking all my Christmas cookies, and arranged them on plates with name tags for everyone. As part of that, I frosted about two dozen Christmas tree-shaped sugar cookies, which was probably the hardest possible shape to try to spread buttercream frosting on. Ugh! Never doing that again! Haha! Then Sunday afternoon and evening I went and delivered them all. Whew!<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW8_u1TNaRR420wufrk6Io7nyh1SjIHefhi1PA8e45HHCkt2YwjWY5RJ0M7jX4HrkyeEg2qK3Yqy8tfNgZfzOPvE0o5TmCyt7FK993ahRqIRn9iJRPgmDqxfVoI004Lr4NowbZ4rxluo5G/s1600/Christmas+Cookies.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW8_u1TNaRR420wufrk6Io7nyh1SjIHefhi1PA8e45HHCkt2YwjWY5RJ0M7jX4HrkyeEg2qK3Yqy8tfNgZfzOPvE0o5TmCyt7FK993ahRqIRn9iJRPgmDqxfVoI004Lr4NowbZ4rxluo5G/s400/Christmas+Cookies.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707725144502431202" border="0" /></a><br /><span></span></div><div><span>That Tuesday I subbed a ballet class for a fellow teacher, and then Wednesday right after work I went to a cookie exchange, and came back with a few dozen cookies and recipes. Yum! :D</span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>Friday I packed my suitcase and dragged it up Main Street to work with me. </span>:)<span> As soon as my class was over, my totally awesome visiting teacher arrived and took me straight to the airport. My plane touched down in Michigan at midnight, and my parents were there waiting to pick me up. <3 It was so great to be with my family again!</span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>Some highlights from the week were eating Just Baked cupcakes and watching "Kung Fu Panda 2" with mom and dad, seeing old friends at church, visiting with Naomi and her totally awesome - and newly expanded - family, reading dad's poetry, just spending time talking with mom and dad, having everybody over on Wednesday (and having them like my pies </span><span>:D ), baking sugar cookies with Naomi and Arianna, making a two-person mosh pit with Rem at Beth and Cody's reception, and eating at Olga's Kitchen with mom, dad, and Remick. I was really sad to have to leave everyone without being able to spend more time with them, but I really had a wonderful trip. </span><img src="http://mail.yimg.com/ok/u/assets/img/emoticons/emo5.gif" alt=":x lovestruck" /></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>At the Detroit airport I was given the wrong ticket, and then our plane arrived late - and I had a short connection to make in Denver - but everything got straightened out, many thanks to the airport personnel and the speedy pilots. :) My plane arrived on time in Salt Lake at 11pm, but my luggage didn't appear until almost 12:30, and so we didn't get home until 12:45! It was so nice to see my sweet husband again and sleep in my own bed. :)</span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>The next morning was Christmas Eve, and Tyson and I had to leave by 11am to meet with a couple in American Fork who was interested in booking with him to shoot their wedding. And they did! It was his first contract on his own, and very cool to finally have. :) Then we continued south to his parents' house and had a wonderful evening with Christmas dinner, a reading of Luke 2, and opening presents. By the time we left, I was exhausted, but Chris had just arrived from Maryland, so we stopped by and visited with him and his dad for a bit.</span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>Tyson had been getting pretty sick that day, and it was a full-blown icky cold on Christmas morning. :(</span><span> So I went to church by myself and sang in the choir. It was a really sweet and uplifting meeting. <3 Then I came home and made whole wheat waffles for brunch. Rem and Amelia came over for dinner, and afterward Tyson used his new pastry cutter set to make homemade chocolate-frosted doughnuts. We've decided that next time they need a clear glaze to sweeten them up, but aside from that they were pretty amazing. :) We had a fun evening talking and eating and watching "A Charlie Brown Christmas." :)<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeR4Kh5CzCi4JQJNi94bn8LFtF4WEZmvzMgogB2wcOhp3ZMQioEYHCJEqanS1F_E4H_bTvdq34SDAl9gtOtgMaBhyNGO7Xjo4wLk09xw2W5K2Gr_AhHp5Pt4zFBjTwT2iFlJGnl7uAhdLn/s1600/IMG_3129b.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 332px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeR4Kh5CzCi4JQJNi94bn8LFtF4WEZmvzMgogB2wcOhp3ZMQioEYHCJEqanS1F_E4H_bTvdq34SDAl9gtOtgMaBhyNGO7Xjo4wLk09xw2W5K2Gr_AhHp5Pt4zFBjTwT2iFlJGnl7uAhdLn/s400/IMG_3129b.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707725149287749026" border="0" /></a><br /><span></span></div><div><span>On Monday Tyson and I used our Christmas money and went shopping for new shoes. His shoes were falling apart, and my physical therapist has told me I need to get some high-quality support on my feet, so we were very grateful to be able to get new ones. That evening we went over to Chris's house again, too. :)</span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>On Wednesday I took Tyson to work, did the grocery shopping, bought a few things at Deseret Industries, went to physical therapy, packed some dinner, picked up Tyson, and then we drove down to Orem again to spend the evening with Chris. Thursday I did some preparatory baking so that we'll have quick and healthy food once everything starts up again. Friday I cleaned the house - and then we got to celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary! :) We went to P.F.Chang's to use a gift card we were given, but there was a 90+ minute wait. So we made reservations for 10pm, bought tickets to see Sherlock Holmes, grabbed a snack, watched the movie, and <span style="font-style:italic;">then</span> ate dinner! It was a really fun night, and it was so nice to spend time together just having fun. :)</span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>Yesterday I accidentally slept in ridiculously late (almost 11am!), but still managed to do my p.t. exercises, shower, do my visiting teaching, and bake a totally awesome apricot upside-down cake with honey cardamom sauce before we went to Chris's to ring in the New Year. :)<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhPZ-mvV698JgvY3tcRdU9ZfAXxiuRbAZptHuQm0ATeil8r-PrWpHNYmBpWMZr0MJZznIikXwGLpaRYOIqNh8c62-n6i_jAf3yXH_LODieZAjIIiHwJiysjLsXK8Ug74yRi-Nm_98mQXEt/s1600/tn2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhPZ-mvV698JgvY3tcRdU9ZfAXxiuRbAZptHuQm0ATeil8r-PrWpHNYmBpWMZr0MJZznIikXwGLpaRYOIqNh8c62-n6i_jAf3yXH_LODieZAjIIiHwJiysjLsXK8Ug74yRi-Nm_98mQXEt/s400/tn2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707725153646092594" border="0" /></a><br /><span></span></div><div><span>And today our ward began at 11am. :) *sigh of relief*<br /></span></div><div><br /><span></span></div><div><span>The End.<br /></span></div>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-5600558677150449042011-12-05T20:03:00.000-08:002012-02-10T20:06:17.187-08:00Blowin' in the Wind<span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">I hope you all had a safe and happy - and delicious - Thanksgiving!</span><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467102"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467103"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">The first part of November was pretty packed. I began physical therapy (2 1/4 hours twice a week, plus a 15 minute walk each way), Tyson and I were assigned to be on the committee for the ward Christmas party, and we had to take extra time to prepare and pack for our trip to visit Tyson's extended family for Thanksgiving. :)</span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467318"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467319"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">Also, on the 7th, Tyson heard back from the job he interviewed for on the 31st, and they offered him the job! After some pondering and prayer, we decided he would take it. It will be a cut in pay, but it will allow him to use his degree, and move him toward his professional licenser. :) Yay!<br /></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467134"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467135"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">The week before we left - in addition to our usual multiple jobs and responsibilities - was the Primary Program (which went very well!), a Christmas party meeting, a stake Primary leadership meeting, a dental implant, and a haircut (while the haircut itself didn't take that long, the walk to and from did). Then we drove down to Spanish Fork on Friday night and spent the night at Mike and Caleen's.<br /></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467450"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"><br /></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467451"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">The whole family left together the next morning, and spent the day driving down to southern California. Tyson and I stayed with his cousin Carrie (She reminds me a lot of Jacqui - I love her!), and Sunday we went to her ward, which was one of the wards in the last area of my mission! The ward boundaries have been changed a lot, but there were still a few people that I recognized, which was really cool. That Tuesday Tyson and I went to the Newport Beach temple, which was maybe a hair larger than Detroit, but was really beautiful. Wednesday Mike and Caleen took the family to Disneyland, which was pretty fun, and I was even able to ride a few rides despite my back. :) Thursday we had Thanksgiving at his Aunt Susan's house. I made the rolls and upside-down apple pie, and Tyson made pecan pie. There was actually an adventure trying to get the rolls done, since I suddenly found myself without an oven for them (dumb turkey! </span>;)<span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"> ). Luckily, is Aunt Beverly lives nearby, and she graciously let us come over and hog her oven. Everyone was so kind and helped me get the rising rolls into the back of the car, and Tyson drove carefully to his aunt's house. He was a huge blessing to me in the kitchen that day, prepping pans for the rolls, and peeling, slicing, and mixing apples for the pie, and then driving the rolls to an oven, all in addition to making his pecan pie! He saved the day!</span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467598"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467599"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">Anywho, we had a great time with his family that night. They are all so kind and generous and welcoming!</span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467612"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467613"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">The next day, Tyson took family pictures for his cousins' cousin. Then we went to downtown LA, checked out the Hollywood walk of fame, went up to an observatory, and then went to the Walt Disney Concert Hall by architect Frank Gehry so Tyson could take pictures. At first I stayed in car and read my scriptures. After a little bit, I heard a young woman begin screaming, and was able to make out, "Get away from me!" My heart pounding, I quickly fumbled around and grabbed my phone, ready to dial 911, and got out of the car, deliberately setting off the car alarm in the process, in hopes that it would shake things up a bit. It turns out that the young woman was with a friend and two mother-type women, and had slammed her fingers in the car door. After scaring me that badly, the selfish part of me hopes she broke them all! LOL! I was a little rattled after that (she was still sitting there wailing, while one woman held her hands and the others went for ice), so I decided to join Tyson while he took pictures. :)</span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467755"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467756"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">The next day we drove home, and were so grateful to be heading the opposite direction of the miles of backed up traffic. :)<br /></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467771"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467772"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">I spent the next several days playing catch-up, and trying to get things in order before I leave for Michigan. And then . . .<br /></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467789"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_1323031982467790"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">Wednesday night/early Thursday morning southern Davis county was hit with a windstorm unlike anything I've ever seen. It would blow so hard against our bedroom window that it woke me several times. I had no idea what was going on - wind, snow, hail, snowplows??? Then the power went out around 6:30am, shortly before I got up. It was Tyson's first day at his new job in Salt Lake, so he left and I stayed home and bundled up and cleaned the house. CAA got their power just in time for me to go to work, and we had classes that night. It was then that I realized the extent of what had happened. Not only was most of Bountiful out of power, but so were neighboring Centerville and Farmington. (When the sun set, I could see from my work that the temple and its section of hillside were still dark.) Large trees were uprooted and toppled all over town. Roofing shingles had been blown all over. The signs for the Chase bank and Fresh Market at our corner both had the plastic blown out and broken and scattered. Flying debris had bent over street signs. It was crazy!</span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_13230319824671051"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_13230319824671052"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">That night, Tyson picked me up from work and we went out to eat (warm food!), then picked up some extra candles, and bundled up and went to bed early. Our power came back on shortly before midnight - yay! However, our bishop and his second counselor both had to wait another day or two for power to be restored to their part of the neighborhood.</span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_13230319824671077"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_13230319824671078"><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">Saturday was a quiet day. After choir practice, I ran a few errands, then baked Christmas cookies, while Tyson helped a family move, then studied photography while watching football. :)</span></div><div id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_13230319824671219"><br /><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781"></span></div><span id="yiv428307324yui_3_2_0_16_132303198246781">Yesterday morning a last-minute priesthood meeting was held at 7am, and when Tyson came back, he told me that church had been cancelled for our entire stake. Instead of church, everyone who was able helped pick up branches, cut up fallen trees, and take it all to the city dump, which the mayor had opened until 5pm specifically for that purpose. Another wind storm was slated to hit last night, and they wanted to get everything cleaned up before then. (That storm wasn't nearly as bad, by the way, and everybody is fine and has power still. Whew!) Then Tyson and I went to his parents' house to celebrate his dad's birthday. It was a fun night with great people and good food!<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Speaking of food,</span> I tried a recipe for pumpkin bread with a cheesecake layer in it, and it is a definite keeper! It's as if it melts into pumpkin pie in your mouth! And just check out its adorable smile! Also, twice now I've made this upside-down apple pie, and it is fabulous! I have a photo of it before it's cut, but alas, it's too popular for to be able to show you a slice! :)<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqmzW9fS0RWMkzo99hnrIT9FQnWvHVFywfMbK6hxoyPweZgl3eYnGK0qNizTUbgRrA9TbnCaPtlldBOmQjKGz2dKxymo9_Bt6kIn7I0DEN-SCOj8FJnSNMWaVOmiLBIqMu8YZjL4ER2nCV/s1600/tn.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqmzW9fS0RWMkzo99hnrIT9FQnWvHVFywfMbK6hxoyPweZgl3eYnGK0qNizTUbgRrA9TbnCaPtlldBOmQjKGz2dKxymo9_Bt6kIn7I0DEN-SCOj8FJnSNMWaVOmiLBIqMu8YZjL4ER2nCV/s400/tn.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707724225135571074" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxw_gwlctuI1zzeWMeNQAffTu1MuOwOp5XGRJ-PwsQATbYTfaMXLyHsmNn2Tgn-b0BkUTlx3pRJT53xL_IUn6wrjAWGE6uPec0kMAMCnNqy_xbiaC2tS66hXnbHStrjRk-Ua44NM4jQRnD/s1600/tn1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxw_gwlctuI1zzeWMeNQAffTu1MuOwOp5XGRJ-PwsQATbYTfaMXLyHsmNn2Tgn-b0BkUTlx3pRJT53xL_IUn6wrjAWGE6uPec0kMAMCnNqy_xbiaC2tS66hXnbHStrjRk-Ua44NM4jQRnD/s400/tn1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707724229255547282" border="0" /></a>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-8174572034718726532011-11-07T20:54:00.000-08:002011-11-07T21:19:23.099-08:00Just Say No to Vembers<span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">Happy November everyone!</span><span><br /></span></span><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286152"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286153"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">Late <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_0">Friday night</span> it began to snow here in Bountiful, and I left for ward choir practice with an inch or so of snow on the grass and trees. :)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286182"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286183"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">Since I last wrote two months ago, I agreed to teach two classes at work: a Ballet Level 3 and a Ballet Level 4. The level three class is just barely old enough for me to get away with a more technical and less creative class (so I don't have to run and jump and roll around myself), and both classes are basic enough that I don't have to teach arabesques or complex jumps or port de bras. I still have to be careful, but I am so excited to be teaching again. I just love my girls!</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286396"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286401"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">I've also been to a couple of doctors, and am now seeing a physical therapist for my back. She explains everything to me, which really helps me both to trust her and to be diligent with my exercises. I haven't experienced an relief yet (it's actually been a bit worse this week), but the goal is to slowly increase my exercises while keeping the pain from traveling down my legs (and so far it hasn't). And then we'll take it from there.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286458"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286477"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">Back in September, we had a good Labor Day weekend. The weekend after that was stake conference, for which Tyson and I sang in the choir. The next weekend we had the Failners from our ward over for dinner and played Thurn and Taxis with them. I think that has become our new favorite game. :) (Thank you, Kevin and Jacqui!)<br /></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286610"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286611"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">The weekend after that we visited Tyson's best friend Chris's mom, Terry, in the hospital. Actually, we visited her family in the hospital, because she was already unconscious and passed away that night. She had lived with cystic fibrosis, raised six kids, and beaten the odds for a very long time. She was petite and cheerful and funny and welcoming, and she is very missed. We are all comforted, however, by the knowledge that she no longer has to fight for every breath. The next night I attended the Relief Society broadcast, where I heard about the new book on the history of the Relief Society, and was so uplifted by President Utchdorf's loving counsel. :) The next day was Sunday, and we had Chris's brother Zach, with his new - and pregnant - wife, Nancy over for dinner.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286646"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286647"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">The next weekend was General Conference, which was wonderful, as usual. :) We went down to <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_1">Spanish Fork</span> the night before and spent the night, and then got to watch conference on Mike and Caleen's big TV. :) Caleen also sent us home with pears, raspberries, potatoes, tomatoes, tomatilloes, peppers, eggplant, and squash! While Tyson was gone that evening, I rearranged the fridge and pantry, trying to make "room enough to receive it!" (Malachi <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_2">3:10</span>) :D <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_3">Sunday morning</span> we slept in, made steel cut oatmeal, watched conference, and then drove down to visit Terry's family. (Hence no time for an email last month.) The following morning we attended her funeral. (There was no hurry because she had chosen to donate her body to research. This also gave Chris time to get a flight from <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_4">Maryland</span> out to Utah.)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286776"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286777"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">The following <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_5">Friday evening</span> I stayed up late cutting, coring, peeling, and canning 11 quarts worth of the pears Caleen gave me, in the jars she gave me. I'm so proud of myself, but that was sure some hard work! The next morning we drove up to <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_6">Idaho</span> to attend Tyson's cousin's daughter's baptism. Tyson also took family pictures for everyone that afternoon. It was a beautiful fall day, and everyone was so nice! We had a huge lunch together, then went to the park across from the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_7">Idaho Falls</span> temple to take the pictures. :)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286846"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286847"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">The <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_8">next Thursday</span>, after work I went to a circus-themed murder mystery party with a bunch of sisters from my ward. I was assigned to be a circus goer dressed as a hippie. Type casting, I say! :D When I got there (hair straightened, and all decked out in homemade tie-dye), there had been some last-minute changes, and I was now Sampson the Strong Woman - oops! But whatever, we all had a great time, laughed at ourselves, and ate yummy food. :) That Saturday was the Relief Society's Super Saturday. I slept in, but still had time to go and learn how to make whole wheat bread, no-roll pie crust, and fabric flowers for barrettes and headbands. :)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286946"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286947"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145">The next week and weekend were delightfully uneventful. :)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286958"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286959"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_9">Last Saturday</span> we went to the Marujis' for dinner and a rematch of Thurn and Taxis. :D Sunday we went to the Kellys' for dinner with the Burrs, as a kind of farewell dinner, since Chelsea Burr and I visit teach Rebecca Kelly, and Chelsea is moving out of our ward. And Monday was Halloween! Rem and Amelia came over for dinner (witch fingers, goblin grins, and snake, with brownies for dessert). It was really nice to be able to spend time with them, and to ooh and ahh over the adorable little kids that came trick-or-treating. :)</span></span></div><div style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_13206085022861032"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><span id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"></span></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"><span style="font-size:85%;">Which brings me to this weekend, in which we did nothing. Well, not nothing, but it has been relatively quiet; Tyson didn't even have any photography work yesterday. :) Oh! There is one exciting little thing this weekend! The family that recently moved in to the upstairs apartment across from ours was featured in our ward's November newsletter. It turns out, the wife has a vegetarian food blog and loves to meditate, and the husband is a filmmaker!!! We finally connected yesterday, and she wants me to do a guest post on her blog, and I want her to help me learn how to meditate, and our husbands can talk about cameras and movies, and we're going over to their place <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727972_10">next Sunday</span> for dinner with another family in our ward who recently became vegans! When I talk to Tyson about them, I keep jokingly referring to them as "our new best friends." Haha!<br /><br />And of course, I gots to talk about some foods! (even though it's fast Sunday, and I'm ready to devour anything :D ) I've included pictures of the banana cream and chocolate cream pies we ate with the Failners. Sorry that they're partially eaten, I was about to devour the last two pieces when I realized I hadn't taken a picture. :D There's also a picture of the corner of the french apple tart I made for a missionary's open house. I just had to eat a corner or two to make sure it turned out - the crust was so flaky and delicious that I hated to have to part with it. :) And then there's a new staple: cheesy baked penne in ramekins; and a new love: ratatouille tart with cornmeal crust - such a delicious way to use and eat those fall veggies! Then there are the pears and the apple butter I canned. And finally, Halloween dinner. I included the snake before rolling, before baking, and then before eating. :D<br /><br /><br /></span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjrhAei1IHSuXEm_2o2lXSNutiNFWfOCaruotvIaoP4leV19CtqjVSZzpi-dzupI-wiXXhDGZgt0Bk9H14swLRLPyReWEUpvmK2oLcGVUXEJCnavPtZlnfdkNtzLWtdh6530gAY8lf8DR3/s1600/IMG_3026.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjrhAei1IHSuXEm_2o2lXSNutiNFWfOCaruotvIaoP4leV19CtqjVSZzpi-dzupI-wiXXhDGZgt0Bk9H14swLRLPyReWEUpvmK2oLcGVUXEJCnavPtZlnfdkNtzLWtdh6530gAY8lf8DR3/s400/IMG_3026.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672486344367537682" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSlM7xvIGZZrHrZhRp8Orq90iVxvPBSLhF0AnnLUlOQBE0Ld3E4CK8_ve4yIdAnE7OBR-Rj5K6zCecTo1vK75_1aTVtxbtJs7PhJneScA3RVm92fd24G1RAZjvR5Fu9LqMUnHVEcv8dEZh/s1600/IMG_3032.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSlM7xvIGZZrHrZhRp8Orq90iVxvPBSLhF0AnnLUlOQBE0Ld3E4CK8_ve4yIdAnE7OBR-Rj5K6zCecTo1vK75_1aTVtxbtJs7PhJneScA3RVm92fd24G1RAZjvR5Fu9LqMUnHVEcv8dEZh/s400/IMG_3032.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672486349841029506" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5TGwYhs_RGZS8TzjTpffK9ITUoiKOZPTV-4k1UMP4KMO5upU45ufnuBJwm07sBA62ZFvkk26nEfHDWqKoU9nlyUxWjey_wVb1jcFcKiRlpQNZa5JAFk47Xpk1_qOCcRGxMOkhOUtzmGjw/s1600/IMG_3037.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5TGwYhs_RGZS8TzjTpffK9ITUoiKOZPTV-4k1UMP4KMO5upU45ufnuBJwm07sBA62ZFvkk26nEfHDWqKoU9nlyUxWjey_wVb1jcFcKiRlpQNZa5JAFk47Xpk1_qOCcRGxMOkhOUtzmGjw/s400/IMG_3037.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672486356792408962" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiSheM-S068EIna-wWyuElQcVN6MliK0HAIlXwu6ik83OZJd83k1n2ZG8-KgP94kQNdg5ap9XF_VORu9G-WntXi2eCNhjWLRCiqi1oqoSgo5F0y-Mm7X3nT5M-4vtUKQT7jkZlZnemhVvf/s1600/IMG_3041.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiSheM-S068EIna-wWyuElQcVN6MliK0HAIlXwu6ik83OZJd83k1n2ZG8-KgP94kQNdg5ap9XF_VORu9G-WntXi2eCNhjWLRCiqi1oqoSgo5F0y-Mm7X3nT5M-4vtUKQT7jkZlZnemhVvf/s400/IMG_3041.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672486368380158642" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7BlN7JciodG3p-Eq-Aws41pQsOBsXA4GbUwtsqSd1M3gw0chrpTXrEXeICs4BVKfAW5VN5mZsPLfYPG9BcMP5Oa77zjbzl5jQiUGFRFvhV22vRbrTeKu4rRZpRUXhKSLMSFeB0dJ-x-r/s1600/IMG_3047.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7BlN7JciodG3p-Eq-Aws41pQsOBsXA4GbUwtsqSd1M3gw0chrpTXrEXeICs4BVKfAW5VN5mZsPLfYPG9BcMP5Oa77zjbzl5jQiUGFRFvhV22vRbrTeKu4rRZpRUXhKSLMSFeB0dJ-x-r/s400/IMG_3047.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672486374091340690" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzJEHT1cjFNOI4u_ojWCAZWiP9nwkiHT5HuqmrPJdc6smLaKMWWqOUxDdWTzC29DvGHMd-7lpBL1e2UD1o_CDH3Afr5SxvFcGRW3lrtrArky6W66sijsCVeHSbDhSW08cXsSMhOD1TVLVS/s1600/IMG_3055.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzJEHT1cjFNOI4u_ojWCAZWiP9nwkiHT5HuqmrPJdc6smLaKMWWqOUxDdWTzC29DvGHMd-7lpBL1e2UD1o_CDH3Afr5SxvFcGRW3lrtrArky6W66sijsCVeHSbDhSW08cXsSMhOD1TVLVS/s400/IMG_3055.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672487651964517410" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTRL9PXmBOIKjLIIaWh6SEv7hwlDR34R-ID5vMoTufFKAlvDh-1jY3HHIkg3hgkCVAVQX_Z5KAm3vBS3wHYUfDta1DuGhKiYA8ewAcEXivCrf1P-nU-69hHW4M8vDVGV41EF_kLKcjCmwy/s1600/IMG_3061.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTRL9PXmBOIKjLIIaWh6SEv7hwlDR34R-ID5vMoTufFKAlvDh-1jY3HHIkg3hgkCVAVQX_Z5KAm3vBS3wHYUfDta1DuGhKiYA8ewAcEXivCrf1P-nU-69hHW4M8vDVGV41EF_kLKcjCmwy/s400/IMG_3061.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672487677265454722" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEo05VXf0-_0VzQYFcsctpY65HkL2ORPoXVL4GnaTUtxR6pqEWDmG_aiIyis2lhsyGIPsBTO2XB1Rxa_v6V-z8BNhW3SHXrPckFyJF727Nt7tKIzi298lHPROQZs_2T04t2S4yjMjaidyh/s1600/IMG_3056.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEo05VXf0-_0VzQYFcsctpY65HkL2ORPoXVL4GnaTUtxR6pqEWDmG_aiIyis2lhsyGIPsBTO2XB1Rxa_v6V-z8BNhW3SHXrPckFyJF727Nt7tKIzi298lHPROQZs_2T04t2S4yjMjaidyh/s400/IMG_3056.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672487652377582418" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUjXlsQfda0NY0tSFe_Vs1Ryuc3H4DJL3fMINTDsL9-d0xvN98wxnSU8DGwESqOXKMjrewenO0pFk2_I5hJBDL1mvPsH2df2kCS6y5v1IpEH6R-l1ROwAGsrKdVqx09kkQvrbuqdnHY_M/s1600/IMG_3058.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUjXlsQfda0NY0tSFe_Vs1Ryuc3H4DJL3fMINTDsL9-d0xvN98wxnSU8DGwESqOXKMjrewenO0pFk2_I5hJBDL1mvPsH2df2kCS6y5v1IpEH6R-l1ROwAGsrKdVqx09kkQvrbuqdnHY_M/s400/IMG_3058.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672487666382873906" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">the pepperoni-less tail portion was for me :)</span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyIhJ-iBK6XWsZWy0HLefMgv8JQmZdNu0SGUib7kuWgCyif63LI7dFVdzJoZWToHP_eTupboVhakgMBFTsIhnyThB_v0vKqrYg0NyGqfBYARqYGGoISH3jXZvoCHHT2cFPfjjY7Nv-z4DR/s1600/IMG_3059.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyIhJ-iBK6XWsZWy0HLefMgv8JQmZdNu0SGUib7kuWgCyif63LI7dFVdzJoZWToHP_eTupboVhakgMBFTsIhnyThB_v0vKqrYg0NyGqfBYARqYGGoISH3jXZvoCHHT2cFPfjjY7Nv-z4DR/s400/IMG_3059.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672487671222170802" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijaiVVXT-d4vwhQ4ITZh55vT49t6hk1L5Wdtyiq_IdXd9lCrwWCFjDtsnHQ80AP-sh9o3yVTM-R51e00Ue9xe7Yss1Au8x9qLy57u6Kf9HNxMBT85ixMTV_0FUXMN5H8oAGL6rt6l1mAkd/s1600/IMG_3063.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijaiVVXT-d4vwhQ4ITZh55vT49t6hk1L5Wdtyiq_IdXd9lCrwWCFjDtsnHQ80AP-sh9o3yVTM-R51e00Ue9xe7Yss1Au8x9qLy57u6Kf9HNxMBT85ixMTV_0FUXMN5H8oAGL6rt6l1mAkd/s400/IMG_3063.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672488262551370498" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBoiURLoDoTTCuhVuNMXsIilmd0y5MEQzHGv7xyE8oFvp6P1QmA5hwbolQ2wDR1gOeUU9mXpzm_Skq6NJqwVwzxVFbDy51UpzRZrsYf1kr8KedXxGEKrm3RhdW75j6A1AFVpL36o2tQykm/s1600/IMG_3066.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBoiURLoDoTTCuhVuNMXsIilmd0y5MEQzHGv7xyE8oFvp6P1QmA5hwbolQ2wDR1gOeUU9mXpzm_Skq6NJqwVwzxVFbDy51UpzRZrsYf1kr8KedXxGEKrm3RhdW75j6A1AFVpL36o2tQykm/s400/IMG_3066.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672488267577512386" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">cream cheeses brownies dyed orange</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;" id="yiv1063800082yui_3_2_0_16_1320608502286145"><span style="font-size:85%;">Whew! Sorry to have to give you two busy months' worth in one blog! Of course, you could just not read any of it, and I would never be the wiser. ;)</span></span>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-13696435657089411862011-09-05T13:52:00.000-07:002011-11-08T08:52:02.714-08:00An August Month(Okay, so it really wasn't an august month.)<br /><br />The first week of August was delightfully quiet. I worked for Tyson, kept up the house, cooked, and began doing some daily low-key workouts. But then the second week came, and I taught (or co-taught) eight classes. It was really hard, but quite fun. :) Unfortunately it was quite painful, too. And the ramped up pain didn't subside until ten days later when I saw a new chiropractor. Ugh. So, I am no longer a dance teacher. I really hope that one day I will be able to heal and teach again, but for now I'm done. And, yeah, as you can probably imagine, I'm quite heartbroken.<br /><br />On the bright side, Jana, the owner of CAA, hired me on at the front desk. I'll be working afternoons/evenings five days a week, which will be a great blessing to our finances. :) And I'll be able to stay a part of such an awesome studio. :)<br /><br />During the week that I taught all those classes, I went to a "nickel auction" in my neighborhood. Nickel auctions work like this: a bunch of ladies dig out their junk and we bid on it in 5-cent increments. It's silly and really fun. I tried to be inconspicuous about needing to stand instead of sit (sitting just hurt too much!), but I did attract a little attention. Fortunately the wonderfully kind sister-in-law of one of the sisters in my ward was there and recommended this amazing place where she experienced a complete recovery from her neck injuries. I went there, and I like their approach, but to make a long and frustrating story short, we can't afford it. But I still have a little hope that maybe something will work out eventually. :)<br /><br />Tyson has been working on starting his photography business, and we're beginning to see the first few inklings of clientele. He's received two inquiries from his website that haven't yet followed through, and then one more this week that is ordering two large prints of the state capitol building! Also, one of his cousin's friends was interested in having him shoot her wedding next spring. Yay! I am so proud of him! If you haven't yet, go check out his website at <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://buildingmomentsphotography.com/"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727985_0">buildingmomentsphotography.com</span></a>. :)<br /><br />On the food side of things, my favorite kitchen conquest this month was eggplant rollatini. Since Mike and Caleen have eggplants in their garden (see photo of a white, egg-shaped eggplant!), I wanted something to do with them aside from eggplant parmesan (and this random tasty recipe I found called vegetable tian). Basically, you slice and lightly broil the eggplant, roll some cheesy goodness inside the slices, pour sauce on it and bake it. Yum!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHlVJAHV7lBY3imVbypfeIgGpaHqbNo-e4X4p7_zbaNtn8mxv2S1EvJy8MUjS8VWdSCW3UKyXNUCHSQpG-6XBe1M37dzdpDLRxEQUomw5SsIqoVSfMnut0JTOZfJBRdWRyoMb_dgdaTzrh/s1600/IMG_3012.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHlVJAHV7lBY3imVbypfeIgGpaHqbNo-e4X4p7_zbaNtn8mxv2S1EvJy8MUjS8VWdSCW3UKyXNUCHSQpG-6XBe1M37dzdpDLRxEQUomw5SsIqoVSfMnut0JTOZfJBRdWRyoMb_dgdaTzrh/s400/IMG_3012.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672668113790469922" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxjNvFasytXfO89fd2H3BmGEj55gZwF69gtp5uT_02OYTDOSJZlg6M1-BwYCIP5vMCsLiMKyV3P1OmL17y-yF7GBV_7VRhq6MBw0ijo3Aor3fXAwDYZAu29v9CFh9BDBqCqKqtPhRnycR/s1600/IMG_3019.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxjNvFasytXfO89fd2H3BmGEj55gZwF69gtp5uT_02OYTDOSJZlg6M1-BwYCIP5vMCsLiMKyV3P1OmL17y-yF7GBV_7VRhq6MBw0ijo3Aor3fXAwDYZAu29v9CFh9BDBqCqKqtPhRnycR/s400/IMG_3019.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672668128104474914" border="0" /></a><br />With the chiles, tomatoes, and zucchini Mike and Caleen gave us, I've made <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1320727985_1">chile</span> relleno casserole, tomato soup, stuffed tomatoes, chocolate zucchini bread, and a new zucchini casserole. (They gave me a nice big zucchini!) It's been so fun figuring out how to use such tasty veggies!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE2V-h3ImcAbx0NAh5WE-ML1-p00Bs6sBpxAUy3A04OGTUeEyIKZgmrFtYcgJuNabYiXGOf3BiwEArTxi8Q6LKpNbggpR-KmSn_-FaaiaKhVRnZ4P01pDn2qakzLNKTAFuuRCYHttQS0U-/s1600/IMG_3018.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE2V-h3ImcAbx0NAh5WE-ML1-p00Bs6sBpxAUy3A04OGTUeEyIKZgmrFtYcgJuNabYiXGOf3BiwEArTxi8Q6LKpNbggpR-KmSn_-FaaiaKhVRnZ4P01pDn2qakzLNKTAFuuRCYHttQS0U-/s400/IMG_3018.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672668122449814226" border="0" /></a><br />I also made the chocolate butter cake recipe from my new favorite book <span style="text-decoration:underline;">Pie in the Sky</span>. (I have to give the book back to the library tomorrow, and I really don't wanna!) I made a half recipe in case it didn't turn out. The chocolate flavor was really mild (it's supposed to be topped with bittersweet ganache, but I'm lazy), but the texture was perfection! It disappeared quickly. Hee, hee.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBp6DTZm6SXP8MWSxn9XmS4Jed0KlAAZrUljjSV2tAsJdqK3h89uTW4lNCY6ev5-imqPuLzMAK4gRgBeykNvi7fwChApsFVUZbh3sfHeOkZDoIjB-wwuiOtIvl_C2uIvN3K98Kd7TftYXx/s1600/IMG_3025.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBp6DTZm6SXP8MWSxn9XmS4Jed0KlAAZrUljjSV2tAsJdqK3h89uTW4lNCY6ev5-imqPuLzMAK4gRgBeykNvi7fwChApsFVUZbh3sfHeOkZDoIjB-wwuiOtIvl_C2uIvN3K98Kd7TftYXx/s400/IMG_3025.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672668137334666466" border="0" /></a><br />Oh, and (sorry I can't stop talking about food!) about a month ago Tyson made his divine pudding from scratch (heavy cream, egg yolks, butter, the whole nine lards - I mean yards!), only he added cocoa to it to make it chocolate pudding. It cooked up beautifully and tasted sinful. Sadly, after letting it set up in the fridge for a few hours, it turned into soup! It was amazingly rich and delicious chocolate soup, but just a little too weird. We didn't know what to do with it, but I didn't want to just throw it all out, so I dumped most of it into a container and froze it. This week I took it out (I really wanted some chocolate!) and scrapped a little off the top. Epiphany! I then thawed it out in the fridge and poured it all into my popsicle molds to make the best fudgesicles ever! I am so proud of me. :DSpringer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-70675163364052996642011-07-10T11:24:00.000-07:002011-11-08T08:59:36.788-08:00Life AS I Know ItUgh! Sorry for the long silence. I've so rarely had time on a Sunday to sit down and write - and when I have, I've typically taken a nap instead. ;)<br /><br />So, in brief, in April was General Conference, my birthday, CAA's creative dance concert, and Easter. I LOVED General Conference, as is typical. Elder Lynn G. Robbins' talk about <span style="font-style:italic;">being</span> instead of just <span style="font-style:italic;">doing</span> really hit home for me, as did the story shared by Elder D. Todd Christofferson about the currant bush that grew tree-like and had to be pruned back to become the fruitful bush the gardener intended it to be.<br /><br />For the creative dance concert, at the beginning of Friday night's performance, a dancer apparently ate too much too close to the performance and vomited her dinner in the hallway backstage where everyone had to walk by. For Saturday's matinee, we found that some of our larger props had been vandalized overnight, and needed to be repaired ASAP. Saturday night had the smallest crisis, with a young dancer brought to the wrong side of the stage. She didn't realize it until the dance started, but she was too young to just dance on and fake it, and so while everyone else danced, she balled her eyes out while a kind teacher ran her over to the correct side as quickly as possible. Poor, silly little thing!<br /><br />In May, CAA hosted the <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1311445315_0">Utah</span> Dance Festival, and I helped out with that. I also taught the last of my classes for the year, wrapping them up with tests, prizes, and games. I also planted rosemary and thyme in pots outside, and planted impatiens in the former sandbox in front of our living room window.<br /><br />June was CRAZY! Actually, the first two weeks were quiet and wonderful. Then all the Palmers came into town for a family reunion, and I had to spend time with them. (It was SO wonderful to see you all!!!) Simultaneously, Tyson's best friend, Chris, came from <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1311445315_1">Maryland</span> to visit his family here, and we had to spend time with him. I rear-ended someone, and then was immediately rear-ended myself, scaring me like I've never been scared before, and leaving me without my own transportation. I also now have whiplash and a newly-injured lower back - I'm just glad no one else involved was seriously hurt!<br /><br />Right around the time our friends left town, we went into full "Youth Conference Mode," since we were the co-chairs. On Sunday the 26th, we met with the youth during the first hour of church, then I taught our Primary class's lesson during the second hour of church, and then Tyson and I sang a duet during sacrament meeting. Whew! Tyson left Wednesday at 2:00 am to go down early to <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1311445315_2">Cedar City</span> to take photographs for his work, and then met up with us for dinner Thursday. That Wednesday, I got sick. I felt awful all that night, and was sure I wouldn't be able to leave with everyone the next morning, but just before morning arrived the intensity ebbed, and I felt well enough to go. :) We went down to Hurricane (pronounced "her-a-kin," for all you non-Utahns), and stayed in the <span style="font-style:italic;">huge</span> (six bedrooms, pizza oven, pool and fishing pond, etc.) house of a church member, swam in their pool, toured historical sites, went to the St. George temple, and basically had a fun and spiritual time. I was totally clueless about how to do something like this, but we have the best youth, and AMAZING leaders, and they made it a wonderful experience! :D<br /><br />The day after we got back was Tyson's birthday, so we went down to <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1311445315_3">Spanish Fork</span> and had dinner and pie and cheesecake with them. :) The day after that was the 4th of July. Tyson played a game of ultimate frisbee in the morning, and I went to the gym and did a little light cardio per my physical therapist's request. However, before we could shower, a water main broke and we had no running water. Pooh! Thankfully, I have water stored under our bed! Ta-da! We were able to drink, and Tyson was able to bathe before we went to a movie matinee. The water came back on shortly after we got home, and were very thankful!<br /><br />You know I always have to talk about food, so here it goes! :) Thanks to the fantastically-amazing Kitchen Aid slicer Mike and Caleen got me for my birthday, Tyson and I made several dinners of burgers and oven-fries around Memorial Day. I've included a photo of my veggie-topped veggie burger with my rustic, salty, peppery, garlicky fries. :) Just the way I like them! Nom nom nom!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjfto2T4EKaBZOmmeikns2UfkbMXwN1nAGiupXHnMDcZG6-dCGg9nDaQ_mfHOQSXYHLBCmShQl7uPVcdbcueXlHvJOURR453VCRP-jPlRZIdNF56XGESB7vCJtjhfR8Jjggcj8S_33gzv1/s1600/IMG_2884.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjfto2T4EKaBZOmmeikns2UfkbMXwN1nAGiupXHnMDcZG6-dCGg9nDaQ_mfHOQSXYHLBCmShQl7uPVcdbcueXlHvJOURR453VCRP-jPlRZIdNF56XGESB7vCJtjhfR8Jjggcj8S_33gzv1/s400/IMG_2884.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672669952545589874" border="0" /></a><br />I came across a recipe for "self-frosting" Nutella cupcakes - golden, buttery cupcakes that aren't too sweet, swirled with rich and sugary Nutella, and then baked. Sooo good!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-H5Qr4rZEcKWm5boAhuctxrof0JHn3KaE4sRHVYAp18Z4Nf6uBOkvki-ddrXBhHBoGN-7SQtXBn2p7tHJGmimDpBrTbPatramnunhOhBSlhymzalDryPo59BL2vv3u4iWCBOzPBda8l2L/s1600/IMG_2890.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-H5Qr4rZEcKWm5boAhuctxrof0JHn3KaE4sRHVYAp18Z4Nf6uBOkvki-ddrXBhHBoGN-7SQtXBn2p7tHJGmimDpBrTbPatramnunhOhBSlhymzalDryPo59BL2vv3u4iWCBOzPBda8l2L/s400/IMG_2890.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672669950091951650" border="0" /></a><br />I also discovered the most amazing blueberry cobbler. The cake portion is the perfect texture with just the thinnest layer of crispness on top, and sweet-tart blueberries underneath. Divine when topped with vanilla ice cream!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOgvk37zCi2EZ80Jon9PQqB5MNkcuDdeNmXsr_dqRWCqHnYRJn4K2W0uTZOVQUOmWBvMVMFw66lQHQw5biwVlAtrxyU657wqS6ultTY99jIXXIWH8JnHnuRTJfAtv0DrnU2Lic6-FxlpI/s1600/IMG_2944.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOgvk37zCi2EZ80Jon9PQqB5MNkcuDdeNmXsr_dqRWCqHnYRJn4K2W0uTZOVQUOmWBvMVMFw66lQHQw5biwVlAtrxyU657wqS6ultTY99jIXXIWH8JnHnuRTJfAtv0DrnU2Lic6-FxlpI/s400/IMG_2944.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672669942484790818" border="0" /></a><br />On the healthier side, I found this awesome little recipe for pb & j muffins. They aren't very sweet - which makes them perfect for breakfast in my book - and they have carrots, zucchini, 100% whole wheat cake flour, and only honey as sweetener. I'm addicted to them!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9WuCRmbX0pCTaNcaTJyzZS8pV2QfBBiWv9cdoJzTv3s5MA2fp0s2DGHudfy_ITmZJ4m9vUYteiA-jyacWqWTU00hlI7KGx6B5TyhpA_JCaQPfSABhDr6-BzUxoDa00WZsGmKFqpiruYN5/s1600/IMG_2959.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9WuCRmbX0pCTaNcaTJyzZS8pV2QfBBiWv9cdoJzTv3s5MA2fp0s2DGHudfy_ITmZJ4m9vUYteiA-jyacWqWTU00hlI7KGx6B5TyhpA_JCaQPfSABhDr6-BzUxoDa00WZsGmKFqpiruYN5/s400/IMG_2959.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5672669937217688818" border="0" /></a>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-66918592690682058392011-04-13T12:21:00.000-07:002011-04-13T12:42:15.062-07:00April 13th's GroceriesAlright, here's my grocery haul for this week:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCP4kK3PjUQPs1TFFo3vtyL4sNqjCP_E9Q1rUdvNPc61ZVskd2oNo9lO24E632N8VcO9dXAfiNSvehTUiXVsiP6aIpJ_be1IYwT8941TuHh6yoscBYLBos24DEKqGnlBWRVINEQSIUrAha/s1600/2011_04_13+-+53_40.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCP4kK3PjUQPs1TFFo3vtyL4sNqjCP_E9Q1rUdvNPc61ZVskd2oNo9lO24E632N8VcO9dXAfiNSvehTUiXVsiP6aIpJ_be1IYwT8941TuHh6yoscBYLBos24DEKqGnlBWRVINEQSIUrAha/s400/2011_04_13+-+53_40.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5595152129495048082" border="0" /></a><br />Not pictured are the two 10-ounce packages of frozen chopped spinach that I'd already put in the freezer and forgot to pull out for the picture. The grand total was $53.40. However, I did also buy a bag of dark chocolate Hershey's Bliss at Target, which brings to total to $56.79.<br /><br />People say that eating healthy is more expensive. It's possible that's true, but I'm skeptical, so here's my fresh produce for the week: romaine lettuce, celery, a cucumber, asparagus, cauliflower, 1.69 lbs of broccoli crowns, three avocados, red grapes, two mangoes, two apples, four pounds of bananas, and two pounds of strawberries. And that comprises less than $17.00 of my total tab, before tax.<br /><br />How does that compare to your shopping habits? Am I spending too much? I'd love any advice!Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-3569704263181237312011-04-06T13:51:00.000-07:002011-04-06T14:07:53.127-07:00Welcome to My OCDOkay, so it's not technically obsessive-compulsive disorder. But it is a little odd. I want to really know how much we spend on food each month and week, and just what we get for our money. More than numbers on my Excel spreadsheet (yes, you know I have one), I want visuals. Really these blog entries are for my own compulsive need for information and organization, so if you find them dull, I won't be offended if you skip over them.<br /><br />So, here's what I bought today for this week's groceries:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXvqw0Dzg4qpm-MNU_wUnwjViPIJn-7PNKkYZ1Ut4Q77BB1izM8typLhXaDIzTsCpeavHFQK0ndTWoPE5BmxmfHB7BL0kAAXjVgRhBBC4ATFuaRrhRSExGtqTfGLCqiuFy28uMDH6FUtFl/s1600/2011_04_06+-+65_03.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 312px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXvqw0Dzg4qpm-MNU_wUnwjViPIJn-7PNKkYZ1Ut4Q77BB1izM8typLhXaDIzTsCpeavHFQK0ndTWoPE5BmxmfHB7BL0kAAXjVgRhBBC4ATFuaRrhRSExGtqTfGLCqiuFy28uMDH6FUtFl/s400/2011_04_06+-+65_03.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592577144006937298" border="0" /></a>And I spent $65.03. Yes, that's 7 cans of chicken, 10 containers of Yoplait, 5 cans of tomato sauce, 6 cans of mushrooms,3 cans of corn, 2 cans of mandarin oranges, 2 cans each of refried beans, black beans, and green beans, and a can of chickpeas. Plus 3 pounds of unsalted butter, 2 packages of tofu, and 2 dozen cage-free eggs. And all the rest.<br /><br />To accomplish this, I went to Sunflower Market, WinCo, Smith's, Fresh Market, Dick's, and Target this morning between breakfast and lunch. Our planned meals this week are veggie pot pie, broccoli casserole, vegetable tian, and steamed cauliflower with pesto, with plenty of leftovers the other nights, since there's only two of us. :)<br /><br />Oh, and I spent $0.94 on bananas on Monday.Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-66805190519928480382011-03-28T13:27:00.001-07:002011-03-28T13:31:11.203-07:00March Away!March has been a full and challenging month. I was sick for the first three or more weeks, and Tyson is just getting over being sick for a week or so. I've done a lot of subbing at work, and the ballet was in the middle of the month (with three dress rehearsals and four performances in one week!). The up-side is that all the extra work for me has brought us extra cash flow. :)<br /><br />Tyson also launched his new networking website, <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://studentbill.com/"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_0">StudentBill.com</span></a>. It's designed for people who need help and information for student loans, and for those who are sick and frustrated by them - like us! :D We haven't been able to do much because of the crazy month, but if it sounds like something you'd be interested in, by all means join us! :)<br /><br />Last weekend Zach, Tyson's best friend's little brother, got married in the Mt. Timpanogos temple, had their reception in the <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_1">Joseph Smith Memorial Building</span>, and had a luncheon the next day at a Brazilian grill in Provo. Plus, Chris, Tyson's best friend, was in town from <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_2">Maryland</span> (where he's getting his Ph.D.), and so we drove down to <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_3">Orem</span> and hung out with his family quite a bit, and kept getting to bed quite late! :P It was a crazy weekend, but it was a lot of fun, too, because everyone was just awesome! :) Plus, even though they already had a paid photographer, Tyson brought his camera and took a few shots on the side to see what he could do, and has posted them on <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_4">Facebook</span>. :)<br /><br />Whenever/if we move, I've learned that we can't do another basement apartment. Don't get me wrong, I love this little place, but so do the bugs, We now have ants that are constantly meandering around our kitchen and bathroom. I try to sweep, vacuum, and mop every Saturday, but that hasn't helped. What is most frustrating is that they meander underfoot, so I randomly see ant carcases on the floor - or worse, one that I've injured trying clumsily to move around, which just breaks my heart. <span style="font-style:italic;">Stupid ants! I don't want to hurt you, so just go away!!!</span> No solution yet, but I'm working on it.<br /><br />Also, I discovered something new about our spiders this month: <span style="font-style:italic;">They are circus spiders!</span> No joke! Once one sat on our counter near my drinking glass, and I wanted to encourage it to run into a dark corner where I couldn't see it (Is that really too much to ask?). I slowly nudged my glass toward it, and once I made contact with it, it jumped into the air, curling into a ball, bounced on its back, bounced on its curled legs, bounced on its back again, landed on its feet, and scurried away! It creeped me out, yet left me in awe. :) LOL.<br /><br />On the food front, we've made quite a bit of pizza with homemade dough the past two months, and I thought I would try something different. several weeks ago, I took enough dough to make a personal-sized pizza, cut it into fourths and rolled those out. Two I filled with raspberry jam and <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_5">chocolate chips</span>, and two I filled with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_6">strawberry jam</span> and <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_7">cream cheese</span> (to which I'd added a little sugar and vanilla), and folded them into dessert calzones. The raspberry ones were good, but the strawberry-cream cheese were <span style="font-style:italic;">amazing!</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEdNd7abBIh_hj-fY3eNasVNKEDB-0Vt8Uolx9kmMHA6yBxiECNRpKhDfZFMUZVd2t9jhk5RjijF52IEKgg6CYM5fzXGPLl_xs_sTRCSNwdMyl-QpjdKBPwd_NsILsGQikQy0L4wKqtmoM/s1600/IMG_2789b.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEdNd7abBIh_hj-fY3eNasVNKEDB-0Vt8Uolx9kmMHA6yBxiECNRpKhDfZFMUZVd2t9jhk5RjijF52IEKgg6CYM5fzXGPLl_xs_sTRCSNwdMyl-QpjdKBPwd_NsILsGQikQy0L4wKqtmoM/s400/IMG_2789b.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589230714334783346" border="0" /></a><br />Last night we had Tyson's friend Raylene over for her birthday. Since she didn't have any <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_8">birthday cake</span> preferences, I decided to bust out my <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_9">checkerboard cake pan</span> set and see what it could do. I made her a chocolate AND <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_10">vanilla cake</span>, with strawberry (pie) filling and <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_11">chocolate frosting</span>. For someone as frosting-impaired as I am, I made the cake look surprisingly pretty. Unfortunately, the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301344005_12">cake recipe</span> from the cake pan set was dense and rather dry. Pooh! I'm sorry Raylene! I'll just have to use some better recipes in the future, because it was so pretty!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcIlTz6tqS_Hz3c2Z1a8qwjUDb0SEL9SLLeeuqcSt0BqsLrsCtboAsFApba-Cu9yYOjpnykBrl0o8kSQ9M9My7LqApd_MbasrT1Yc5OxCiUnW6b5mvast1MfuaRGckMI3ajTs6gndLZSyU/s1600/IMG_2814b.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcIlTz6tqS_Hz3c2Z1a8qwjUDb0SEL9SLLeeuqcSt0BqsLrsCtboAsFApba-Cu9yYOjpnykBrl0o8kSQ9M9My7LqApd_MbasrT1Yc5OxCiUnW6b5mvast1MfuaRGckMI3ajTs6gndLZSyU/s400/IMG_2814b.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589230704036166146" border="0" /></a>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-82370400911158750342011-02-27T18:56:00.000-08:002011-03-27T16:12:39.496-07:00February Wrap-UpIf you've seen Tyson's recently added <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_0">Facebook</span> photos, no we haven't had a baby. ;) And if you haven't seen them, you should. :) His cousin Hallie and her husband Mike (who live in <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_1">Michigan</span>) adopted a baby girl from Utah. We got to spend time with them while they were here, and got to see and hold Eliza when she was just two days old. Tyson was able to work on expanding his photography skills, too, and take some pictures of her and of their son Landon. They are the sweetest kids! (even though Eliza only wanted us to leave her alone during her photo shoots - LOL) And it was so great being able to spend time with them again. :)<br /><br />Since I last wrote, I saw an orthopedist for my knee, and he said that the MRI looked very similar to a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_2">torn meniscus</span>, but that the indicators didn't "go all the way to the bone," like they should. And my symptoms weren't adding up, either. Then he pressed his thumb on the underside of my patella, where I discovered that it's quite inflamed. Ow! Hahaha! So, now I'm in physical therapy for patella femoral syndrome, which is basically unexplained chronic or recurring <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_3">knee pain</span>. But the physical therapist's observations and recommendations make sense, and I am hopeful for a future with reduced pain. :)<br /><br />This week I've been struggling with a lot of discomfort in my neck, shoulders and lower back. I can't turn my head much, and I can't lie on my right side. Thankfully, my lower back is about 90% better, and I'll be able to see the chiropractor on Tuesday. Also, I still managed to do my PT exercises four days this week, of which I'm pretty proud! :) Hee, hee.<br /><br />And, if I start to feel down about it, I think of my awesome visiting teacher who has had a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_4">brain tumor</span> her whole life. She randomly falls down sometimes, and doesn't have enough balance to do any real physical activities. She also has to wear a hat and sunglasses all the time to prevent insane light-induced headaches. And she is happy and cheerful and enjoys life! :) (And trying out new recipes! I have a partner in crime! Muahahaha!)<br /><br />Tyson's website, <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://architecturelinked.com/"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_5">ArchitectureLinked.com</span></a> finally received 100,000 unique visitors this month! While I don't understand what that means nearly as well as he does, I know that it will increase our clout with search engines so people can find us more easily, and it helps us make money through advertisers, since we have more potential customers for them coming to our site. Yay!<br /><br />On the food front, since I last wrote I made Remick a fortress cake for his <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_6">25th birthday</span>, complete with gummie bears (both attacking and defending), <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_7">Tootsie roll</span> weapons and a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_8">whipped cream</span> mote filled with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_9">Swedish Fish</span>. The cake was devil's food, with whipped cream between its four layers, and finished with a <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_10">chocolate fudge frosting</span>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-hDGVbvcwRPUx_HwuNA4eVrPmBi4c2mz_RwY5RvHuvAkwjEcdzEDHECTH1ZkCg_meMIH66lR_4oP9Wc3YYlWs3SMv9vJuZrLbQTNTkUB7q919iUbreZKXc1Gp72V8MVG80pEuCXFeIoRK/s1600/IMG_2765.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-hDGVbvcwRPUx_HwuNA4eVrPmBi4c2mz_RwY5RvHuvAkwjEcdzEDHECTH1ZkCg_meMIH66lR_4oP9Wc3YYlWs3SMv9vJuZrLbQTNTkUB7q919iUbreZKXc1Gp72V8MVG80pEuCXFeIoRK/s400/IMG_2765.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588899561669377714" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">the beginning</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSbRIX1PjPTmBaVqaYHAOAnwps2J6p67s1wcUKIXDK_wQoUv4T0U8g38FZh4cmv2I3mY6kdVloi98kySUs8-v7rj5FL8AuSr5my1WfXuHO2tVdk2L7FEpnwjxnBWU4rxSrP_0DelVCXhV5/s1600/IMG_2766.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSbRIX1PjPTmBaVqaYHAOAnwps2J6p67s1wcUKIXDK_wQoUv4T0U8g38FZh4cmv2I3mY6kdVloi98kySUs8-v7rj5FL8AuSr5my1WfXuHO2tVdk2L7FEpnwjxnBWU4rxSrP_0DelVCXhV5/s400/IMG_2766.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588899571691929970" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjqzzofB5wWMpubTRh2yXwPeY9pivHyvwIn-oknyVymsY-yIGjgvRkk8OSKKRiD9ibUUAO2_F6m5TSlhEIuar6hVeglGTDS8_o1KH6qufLfHOMqYozVcATa-N5RgUNNDui1B3me9kh9oiD/s1600/IMG_2767.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjqzzofB5wWMpubTRh2yXwPeY9pivHyvwIn-oknyVymsY-yIGjgvRkk8OSKKRiD9ibUUAO2_F6m5TSlhEIuar6hVeglGTDS8_o1KH6qufLfHOMqYozVcATa-N5RgUNNDui1B3me9kh9oiD/s400/IMG_2767.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588899575603117954" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl6fIO2g7-raWpm7OWATYoOhIWa6V08HK5GlLlC7PEFz-EaOKTUcArZ4R2czIxpQPZcu_D8b3i2ofOxWVLIg2z0FW8hanBysI0W7DTMCU3DnpoqzBdysRFCkh0iHbuxMcXCvgI-VZxUs0N/s1600/IMG_2769.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl6fIO2g7-raWpm7OWATYoOhIWa6V08HK5GlLlC7PEFz-EaOKTUcArZ4R2czIxpQPZcu_D8b3i2ofOxWVLIg2z0FW8hanBysI0W7DTMCU3DnpoqzBdysRFCkh0iHbuxMcXCvgI-VZxUs0N/s400/IMG_2769.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588899579820619394" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHMYmkq5mfg1wXDrqjkCAJMttuDTmQdgjBlIXnfCw24gNNF_sf07PgEBE7EHfnNY5hwj4Q1ujnhwzGT-Wc5O7eOc8sYzlO8hUcpbZrV34bHsKse5g_CslZOQpR2-2R7NIWMvIpd7by-tp1/s1600/IMG_2770.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHMYmkq5mfg1wXDrqjkCAJMttuDTmQdgjBlIXnfCw24gNNF_sf07PgEBE7EHfnNY5hwj4Q1ujnhwzGT-Wc5O7eOc8sYzlO8hUcpbZrV34bHsKse5g_CslZOQpR2-2R7NIWMvIpd7by-tp1/s400/IMG_2770.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588899585221372818" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">the finished masterpiece</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR51txZcTifOX87AvQRkMe8PYyIy7MfWShveb826fnKtiYhQXuxriMbmLz2w4EK_hilymWRgh99wzl5GCJSs5c8lJ0XS_CmDy07e71YtXwjY7_bsPFvVOMJ1WRzNg9dJkHOb5fRIRQCU9f/s1600/IMG_2771.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR51txZcTifOX87AvQRkMe8PYyIy7MfWShveb826fnKtiYhQXuxriMbmLz2w4EK_hilymWRgh99wzl5GCJSs5c8lJ0XS_CmDy07e71YtXwjY7_bsPFvVOMJ1WRzNg9dJkHOb5fRIRQCU9f/s400/IMG_2771.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588900441306408210" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBBXkpPIroMJqIiCPgkm4ArbaPoxxil2VHbOi2scaTJHaX801D7cg4FqJZVZy8ACxSAqexrptkmqg4Sh0LiTXTmiQSpgDGh4f-LdrvoE4ddylV_TVXdmwjnG9DxZfvQ5lt6_lapLrqtGmD/s1600/IMG_2773.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBBXkpPIroMJqIiCPgkm4ArbaPoxxil2VHbOi2scaTJHaX801D7cg4FqJZVZy8ACxSAqexrptkmqg4Sh0LiTXTmiQSpgDGh4f-LdrvoE4ddylV_TVXdmwjnG9DxZfvQ5lt6_lapLrqtGmD/s400/IMG_2773.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588900449447072194" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">chocolate catapault</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg05TDaPgj52eBvJZmQ5c3mEQxioyhLBz0a6iKm8GD-stpbvuZ6bEFIkgGkuYGPw_V-3-HT-H7I7Xm4kgcBl1_xkXSAyHkWmEWWgWUAJR0Gx0A0lAXj38ooloncef33-BsAStrP_yWrylCG/s1600/IMG_2774.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg05TDaPgj52eBvJZmQ5c3mEQxioyhLBz0a6iKm8GD-stpbvuZ6bEFIkgGkuYGPw_V-3-HT-H7I7Xm4kgcBl1_xkXSAyHkWmEWWgWUAJR0Gx0A0lAXj38ooloncef33-BsAStrP_yWrylCG/s400/IMG_2774.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588900450936692322" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">gummie bear catapault</span><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiURYENxzIA1bTW-sISDTKsiHFJDPkl9URfJRDd1luxRK1bABtpMkRIQ2E4mJNe_-69N1MdCZJh35civ3zz2aYotrKKbTj-dKC05LpQIbwiA0XR5cKSe1QEW_dq7GNhlBMwAgYc0CZURRtY/s1600/IMG_2775.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiURYENxzIA1bTW-sISDTKsiHFJDPkl9URfJRDd1luxRK1bABtpMkRIQ2E4mJNe_-69N1MdCZJh35civ3zz2aYotrKKbTj-dKC05LpQIbwiA0XR5cKSe1QEW_dq7GNhlBMwAgYc0CZURRtY/s400/IMG_2775.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588900461400060930" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">battering ram</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5tXYad9Fm36lAYRgNJU-V-3b_wlIv4hJpYxaEWFX0ZzZQx6x_xdOPpWh5SKDGGd9IYKKZBJnHQZu2oU6og3jmw-a2oBgyVNc0nf_8jEaZ2UtN3ZpGNdTrVBTl4bM3ppzv8RGf53nUVHQ8/s1600/IMG_2776.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5tXYad9Fm36lAYRgNJU-V-3b_wlIv4hJpYxaEWFX0ZzZQx6x_xdOPpWh5SKDGGd9IYKKZBJnHQZu2oU6og3jmw-a2oBgyVNc0nf_8jEaZ2UtN3ZpGNdTrVBTl4bM3ppzv8RGf53nUVHQ8/s400/IMG_2776.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588900464885030162" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">defending archer</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxsdC3v_RcoiPdHG7i8agagHHC9mNUfR1FqVPYkNmzruazlxNo8FGiuvrnwyzqWxDqaqUn1QX5bcuLhqYYPzB5izY0yVjiyyinAP0-HJ1A6Fr34kDXN7G_rUqAr6bGWbhhZjU1Ho4yyYD/s1600/IMG_2777.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxsdC3v_RcoiPdHG7i8agagHHC9mNUfR1FqVPYkNmzruazlxNo8FGiuvrnwyzqWxDqaqUn1QX5bcuLhqYYPzB5izY0yVjiyyinAP0-HJ1A6Fr34kDXN7G_rUqAr6bGWbhhZjU1Ho4yyYD/s400/IMG_2777.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588900879163497330" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">what four of us could stuff down</span><br /><br /></div>For <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_11">Valentine's Day</span> I baked a <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_12">cake recipe</span> that I made into cupcakes, mini cupcakes, and a mini <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_13">layer cake</span>. I piped <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_14">strawberry jam</span> into the cupcakes and frosted them with strawberry <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_15">buttercream frosting</span>. The jam needed to be piped in a lot deeper, and the frosting was either too cold to pipe, or too warm to hold it's shape, but they still tasted really good. :D For the cake, I sliced each layer in half, then used a heart-shaped <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_16">cookie cutter</span>, and cut them each into a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_17">heart shape</span>. I then made two mini-cakes, with strawberry frosting between the first two layers, and strawberry jam between the second two. Then I tried coating them with "vanilla melty" that I tinted pink. Not good! LOL! I was trying to imitate <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_18">Little Debbie cakes</span>, but I didn't have any idea what I was doing, and the stuff was just too thick. The result was more like a Sting song, "<span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266789_19">Fortress Around Your Heart</span>!" Tyson and I just chipped it off and enjoyed eating the rest of the cake. :D<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNU_woAM9zzhOV3g2P-7K8jhjy1EN6iloKvgdORE-1ko17eybB0M4BJoJSJR6n-HD2aDxMdr6ytfWFoavGIQ0pP1v5KtloHJTkeEJFzA1nVXyj9FwqFtN3OvY2sI2kVH1Q_n-395r5VLFb/s1600/IMG_2782.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNU_woAM9zzhOV3g2P-7K8jhjy1EN6iloKvgdORE-1ko17eybB0M4BJoJSJR6n-HD2aDxMdr6ytfWFoavGIQ0pP1v5KtloHJTkeEJFzA1nVXyj9FwqFtN3OvY2sI2kVH1Q_n-395r5VLFb/s400/IMG_2782.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588898736491517266" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW3t7ViwVYSOWdRg7Np8jBEGmBkQQNWq3NkzKr79h-hCvLjFudCc2c63qh0BDosfJO_18qBD9dt5rJ5k0nPFWi7xB0BPnTy4sOIU9AIyMpVmlK-G2MwuUYeoeINI6hzUlZOi9EfC4FaOXk/s1600/IMG_2785.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW3t7ViwVYSOWdRg7Np8jBEGmBkQQNWq3NkzKr79h-hCvLjFudCc2c63qh0BDosfJO_18qBD9dt5rJ5k0nPFWi7xB0BPnTy4sOIU9AIyMpVmlK-G2MwuUYeoeINI6hzUlZOi9EfC4FaOXk/s400/IMG_2785.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588898748411878882" border="0" /></a><br />Oh, and mom, when you come out here (whenever I have a baby), we'll have to make some homemade guacamole for you. We just tried out a recipe for it last night, and it was a keeper! :)Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-33532589322467820262011-01-23T20:01:00.000-08:002011-03-27T15:59:30.349-07:00Belated Happy New Year :)'Ello! Today has been more exciting than usual. Tyson and I served our first day in Primary. We've been called to teach a class of four 8- to 9-year-olds. It was fun, but definitely took effort. :) Straight from teaching, we both spoke in sacrament meeting (Our ward is backwards and has sacrament meeting last). It felt like leaving the frying pan to go into the fire! :) The day went really well, though, and Tyson's parents came up from <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266566_0">Spanish Fork</span> to hear us talk and then had lunch at our place. It was great to talk with them, and it was fun to finally have people in our home. :)<br /><br />The weather today has been beautiful, too. Over the last few days, the snow has melted, and then today has been beautifully sunny. :) The downside to the weather change, though, is that more than a handful of spiders have crept in and wanted to room with us. I'm not one to kill spiders, but I have made a few exceptions since we moved in. I've caught and released a few, too, but they are <span style="font-style:italic;">really</span> fast, and my arachnophobic nerves can't take too much of that! LOL!<br /><br />Wednesday was the first <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266566_1">Relief Society activity</span> since I moved in. The first half hour were some uplifting talks, and then we just ate soup, salad, and breadsticks, and just talked. We have the best people in our ward, and I had a wonderful night getting to know more of the sisters! (AND they had potato, broccoli cheddar, and artichoke mushroom soups, so I actually had vegetarian options. Sweet!)<br /><br />I've been subbing a lot at work lately, and I'm so grateful for the opportunities. Class is always an adventure. In fact, one my girls in my oldest class had a meltdown Thursday night because I asked her to face the barre for the degage exercise. She began to cry because she would be able to see herself in the mirror, then suddenly claimed that the rest of the class were mean to her and said things about her when she wasn't there. I'd be moved, except that I'm not convinced that she meant any of it! Oy! A few more times during the class she would call out girls for saying things about her. The poor other girls were quite surprised by all this. And now they probably will indeed talk about her this week. Sheesh! What a night! :)<br /><br />I have a couple pictures I wanted to share from Christmas baking. I made a simple <span style="cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266566_2">yule log</span> for <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266566_3">Christmas</span>. I've wanted to make a jelly roll cake since I was quite young, and I finally did it! It was really fun, and quite tasty. Thanks for letting me take the <span style="cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266566_4">jelly roll pan</span>, mom!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYWYCHkbOXZPsudhpVYgocrLy8j4EVRCBZsZAjxpcNfzPWjVBFJaAkyQnJY1v7-hmoDGxNTozEsVxlVUW78yhel4-W3U6NO0cFvcUG4-E_cxkaTX1dEecmwFCYjLb7aKor1dyLKewzaDOD/s1600/IMG_2757.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYWYCHkbOXZPsudhpVYgocrLy8j4EVRCBZsZAjxpcNfzPWjVBFJaAkyQnJY1v7-hmoDGxNTozEsVxlVUW78yhel4-W3U6NO0cFvcUG4-E_cxkaTX1dEecmwFCYjLb7aKor1dyLKewzaDOD/s400/IMG_2757.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588897751339948786" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn9_tETZ1fT6_O15wsJa_-WGnzURtQuyLINtCXV1tva5tbDNh1ll75XYdKL8CKkaYPc9yw1r4EuKuYvpUPomevcyTwKhyphenhyphencMgbn0pQZ4oFfGaIKn-9W8xLj2iSuziq2RfaP2v-w8Cxlj15G/s1600/IMG_2759.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn9_tETZ1fT6_O15wsJa_-WGnzURtQuyLINtCXV1tva5tbDNh1ll75XYdKL8CKkaYPc9yw1r4EuKuYvpUPomevcyTwKhyphenhyphencMgbn0pQZ4oFfGaIKn-9W8xLj2iSuziq2RfaP2v-w8Cxlj15G/s400/IMG_2759.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588897754358286338" border="0" /></a>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-71944220276147232142010-12-26T21:32:00.000-08:002011-03-27T15:55:51.461-07:00Playing Catch-UpSo, in the more than a month that has past since I last wrote, we had an awesome <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266339_0">Thanksgiving</span> with Tyson's family. Everyone - except me ;) - loved Mike's turkey, mashed potatoes, and gravy. Caleen made delicious <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266339_1">green bean casserole</span>, frog-eye salad, and this cranberry compote instead of cranberry sauce. It has dried apricots, <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266339_2">golden raisins</span>, and cardamom - yum! I experimented with pear pie and "Hooray for the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266339_3">Pumpkin Pie</span>" from the Lion House Bakery cookbook. The latter was quite large and had to be carefully moved into a casserole dish, hee, hee! (See pictures) It was a wonderful day of gratitude spent with family. :)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7eUrzLQZTd7Z5185AemXaW4CjNqfS5S66O4GXz96e4nBbQ3w3zARZNH3rJNpTu1ewKO-RS929_3T1yWRT5w6h0j9t3_m2vAAAF4XIAc0ARalWBABwYNyBIBjjjzhSYEGFKceAc5kOSQi_/s1600/IMG_2720.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7eUrzLQZTd7Z5185AemXaW4CjNqfS5S66O4GXz96e4nBbQ3w3zARZNH3rJNpTu1ewKO-RS929_3T1yWRT5w6h0j9t3_m2vAAAF4XIAc0ARalWBABwYNyBIBjjjzhSYEGFKceAc5kOSQi_/s400/IMG_2720.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588896872773291810" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv84PaNXy4KJ5I9PXFwnmdy-8iLlw1zsXbcfxlkMs6GOGPWNCOu8qzewtRwcIwd5NAOWQu0hVVrtN7nVyvbbDJrNOAShy9OMSJhLsV-ZZEGyFivEY-KGNwyueXf9I78sT63uqLlHwo2NlI/s1600/IMG_2719.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv84PaNXy4KJ5I9PXFwnmdy-8iLlw1zsXbcfxlkMs6GOGPWNCOu8qzewtRwcIwd5NAOWQu0hVVrtN7nVyvbbDJrNOAShy9OMSJhLsV-ZZEGyFivEY-KGNwyueXf9I78sT63uqLlHwo2NlI/s400/IMG_2719.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588896881417825970" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig5UlIFqlF51o6xsDfpxVa9C0WZXVh7DfjBpSLQsXMGkbk6op2SmFjEEMxKCagbyUFMVSLhm5A_EKnH5GJdvj1575rSTgQsvzczwPRRN9MOLq8ANu-Tbf7zX-rGc-Ljjw-kGMcGgnDB0vY/s1600/IMG_2723.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig5UlIFqlF51o6xsDfpxVa9C0WZXVh7DfjBpSLQsXMGkbk6op2SmFjEEMxKCagbyUFMVSLhm5A_EKnH5GJdvj1575rSTgQsvzczwPRRN9MOLq8ANu-Tbf7zX-rGc-Ljjw-kGMcGgnDB0vY/s400/IMG_2723.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588896888997987042" border="0" /></a><br />Tyson and I then moved up to Bountiful into a four-plex. Our location is phenomenal. We're so close to everything, and yet we feel totally safe. I still can't wrap my head around it! I love our apartment, too. We finally have our own washer and dryer, and we have a second bedroom in the hope that kidlings will come soon. Our neighbors across the hall, and the ones just above them are members of our ward - which, by the way is awesome! And our neighbor above us is a quiet man who works nights. I'm beginning to hang now pictures on the wall now, too, and it feels more like home all the time. :)<br /><br />Right after we moved, Caleen very kindly arranged things so that I could have my knees MRI-ed at her work at no cost to me. It turns out I have a tear in my right medial meniscus. Ha! Take that doctors! I knew there was something of significance wrong! Okay, so it's not much of a victory, because now I can't dance and have to see and orthopedist and probably undergo physical therapy, but I'm hoping that it will be a victory long-term. :)<br /><br />Also, I love my job teaching ballet on Thursday nights. I have three classes, and two of them make me want to pull my hair out with frustration (!!!), but I still love my dancers and I love preparing for and teaching my classes! :D<br /><br />We had a sweet Christmas this week. Tyson's work has kept him for such long hours lately that they gave him Thursday off in addition to Friday. It was so great to spend so much time together! :) We had a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266339_4">quiet Christmas Eve</span> with just the two of us. <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266339_5">On Christmas Day</span> we drove down to Orem and visited briefly with his best friend Chris's family, then continued on to his own family in Spanish Fork. Remick and Amelia and her sister Beth joined us there. We opened gifts, ate a large and delicious lunch, then all went to see the latest Narnia movie. We returned home and ate desserts - pumpkin pie, apple pie, my black forest pie, and "ugly duckling cake." When we left last night, we stopped by Chris's home again. We sat and talked for a few delightful hours with Chris and his mom, then went home and collapsed into bed. :)<br /><br />I hope you all had a sweet and Merry <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266339_6">Christmas</span> full of joy and love!Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-69243400941724039622010-11-21T18:33:00.000-08:002011-03-27T15:52:07.386-07:00Happy Feet, I've Got Those Happy FeetOn Wednesday I got a call from the owner of the aforementioned <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266282_0">dance studio</span> saying she wanted to hire me! Yipee! So I drove up to Bountiful the next day and watched and took notes during the classes I'll be teaching (three instead of four, but I can also make money subbing for other teachers), and got the run down on everything from Diane, the awesome teacher I'm replacing. It's a great studio and I am SOOO excited to teach these classes!!! I also can take the adult ballet class on Thursday nights for free, and yesterday I took the barre portion of a master class taught by a dancer from <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266282_1">Ballet West</span>. I am just thrilled to be doing what I love again!!! Woo-hoo!<br /><br />Late Tuesday night I thought I might be getting sick, and sure enough I've come down with a cold. However, I'd already scheduled a deep-tissue massage for Thursday morning (with a gift certificate from last Christmas, hee, hee), and if I rescheduled less than 24 hours before I'd have to pay an extra fee. So, I got the massage (so nice!) before going up to Bountiful, but the next day the after-effects of the deep bodywork coupled with body aches from the cold were too much! Ow! LOL. (Note to self . . .)<br /><br />This morning I woke up to snow on the ground, and it made me smile. (It will stop making me smile promptly on January 1st - hee, hee!) Lots of people are sick around here, and I filled in for the teacher in <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266282_2">Relief Society</span> today. We have such wonderful sisters in this ward, and the things they shared made it a really sweet and touching meeting. Just another reason for me to feel happy and so blessed! I will, however, stay home from choir tonight. I'm feeling too crummy (physically) and I don't want to get squished between a bunch of people and breathe all over them. :P Additionally, the snow that melted after church was followed by hail that covered the ground in white, which is still being followed by more snow and some crazy wind. Yep, indoors sounds good. And maybe some hot chocolate . . .Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-34545530717301864242010-11-14T22:50:00.000-08:002011-03-27T15:51:15.255-07:0015 Minutes of FameSo, if you've perused the pages of the November <span style="font-style:italic;">Ensign</span> magazine, you just might have recognized a familiar face on page 113. On that page there's a photo of our group of sisters that attended the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266240_0">General Relief Society</span> Meeting in Salt Lake on September 25th. One of the gutsier sisters called the <span style="font-style:italic;">Ensign</span> cameraman over and asked him to take our picture. We thought it was fun, but never thought that anything would come of the solicited photo op. But, ta-da!<br /><br />Yesterday I drove up to Bountiful for a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266240_1">job interview</span> at a <span style="cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301266240_2">dance studio</span>. They need a teacher for four ballet classes on Thursday evenings. I don't have much experience teaching dance, yet, which makes my chances quite slim. However, the interview went well, and the owner and I liked each other a lot. It seems like a great studio with a nice, healthy approach to dance, yet with high-quality instruction. AND it's 2 MINUTES from the apartment we're moving into. Oooh! Me wants it!! :)<br /><br />Aside from that, there's really been nothing noteworthy this week. I am SOOO excited about moving into our own apartment - and getting our life out of storage - in three weeks!!! That keeps me pumped during the days. :) I'm also reading <span style="text-decoration:underline;">The Way of the Peaceful Warrior</span>, which is pretty interesting (and keeps making me think of Tim). The rest is just business (or busyness) as usual. :)Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-72000875232287593162010-11-07T22:46:00.000-08:002011-03-27T15:50:27.213-07:00Daylight Savings Time . . . Oh, YeahSo this morning I rolled over and saw that Tyson's clock said 8:34 am. Distressed, I jumped out of bed, got ready, and zoomed over to the church with a few minutes to spare. As I pulled up to the church, though, I realized that there were very few cars in the parking lot. I checked the time on my phone, and realized what I'd done. Ah, <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301265217_0">daylight savings time</span>! I had completely spaced the fact that the change was this weekend. LOL.<br /><br />As some of you already know (thanks to <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301265217_1">Facebook</span>), the big news is that yesterday we put down a deposit on an apartment in Bountiful, and we can begin moving in on the first! It's less than ten minutes from Tyson's work (instead of over an hour which he's been driving since February), and in a cul de sac of four-plexes near an elementary school. We're just around the corner from two grocery stores and our bank, too. I'm so sad to move away from our amazing ward, but I just can't describe how elated I am to move into such a perfect place!<br /><br />Last weekend, we were about to put a down payment on another apartment in <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301265217_2">South Jordan</span>. But neither of us felt like it's what the Lord wanted us to do. I was too excited about moving to really listen as I should have, but thankfully Tyson was in tune, and we called back to say we couldn't move in after all. Now I am extra grateful for the Lord's guidance, because the apartment we will have now is better in so many ways. :)<br /><br />Also last weekend, everyone did their trick-or-treating on Saturday out here, which was really cool. I took a little time to carve a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301265217_3">candy corn</span> jack-o-lantern, which I'm pretty proud of, since I didn't know how I was going to do it ahead of time. That night, in the middle of trick-or-treating, a crazy hailstorm pounded down on us! One of the cats got totally freaked out by the noise and curled up on the stairs and just kept meowing. After the hail stopped, though, there was a huge double rainbow we could see from our backyard! Tyson and I both did our best to take pictures of it. :) The next day my celebration consisted of making some tasty Halloween cupcakes. :)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh492Lqd2b2ADZgapw-VHC1omAAl1pdRxY7y5dYb_QCFA0f2PlyhpjeksWbwwDrvpovGG2oVcMEQU8HAl3BPPWaD6XAYrWgmtDKWaoBj85ogfLoJcTOPwdId1o29Vt4yg9yzjylt1Q-dVgF/s1600/Jack+o+Lantern+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 388px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh492Lqd2b2ADZgapw-VHC1omAAl1pdRxY7y5dYb_QCFA0f2PlyhpjeksWbwwDrvpovGG2oVcMEQU8HAl3BPPWaD6XAYrWgmtDKWaoBj85ogfLoJcTOPwdId1o29Vt4yg9yzjylt1Q-dVgF/s400/Jack+o+Lantern+2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588895167547548722" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfr328Vk6WViXLrMt6V-6x-kgEp866Bpp_m6yK3w-Kf_OUOi_r6uevPnnyfgAB3aX1RqFRq4S_1P8LwmINwNBERvbrmbb1Mm_Hnx0YYa081tzPsQpt-8kFogYf5axO1SoUQuflYwQpHxuN/s1600/Double+Rainbow.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfr328Vk6WViXLrMt6V-6x-kgEp866Bpp_m6yK3w-Kf_OUOi_r6uevPnnyfgAB3aX1RqFRq4S_1P8LwmINwNBERvbrmbb1Mm_Hnx0YYa081tzPsQpt-8kFogYf5axO1SoUQuflYwQpHxuN/s400/Double+Rainbow.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588895147512304258" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJTQW2xjuKIzHx3vMxxttSqYdkUv0AUJphEfmRxgz8BLCh39GZ28RHAlovzWUZzY8cWkyWCv7UZZbvGyaTPkiUWfsRuxiZHipDBKKPMxpwuv6ZN-hSmCnoXnTS41vJIn95lj-UKvrqIpq/s1600/Whole+Rainbow.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJTQW2xjuKIzHx3vMxxttSqYdkUv0AUJphEfmRxgz8BLCh39GZ28RHAlovzWUZzY8cWkyWCv7UZZbvGyaTPkiUWfsRuxiZHipDBKKPMxpwuv6ZN-hSmCnoXnTS41vJIn95lj-UKvrqIpq/s400/Whole+Rainbow.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588895155734453026" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwkXbl-N3t4YyUKDjGQT2zKQqu3hJEw7KdWD-RcrttJrp_IP1Ryzo-S7uTc5CLsDY0dfPo0TRznwy5Xc1_FdK5wMYpuCdlVd0iUPwrY_MMGY-8JDm6cWONUFIPj14jX3FJy7DH2vBLS9VZ/s1600/IMG_2668.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwkXbl-N3t4YyUKDjGQT2zKQqu3hJEw7KdWD-RcrttJrp_IP1Ryzo-S7uTc5CLsDY0dfPo0TRznwy5Xc1_FdK5wMYpuCdlVd0iUPwrY_MMGY-8JDm6cWONUFIPj14jX3FJy7DH2vBLS9VZ/s400/IMG_2668.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588895174454270562" border="0" /></a><br />The other pictures are of my favorite recent food conquests. I have fallen in love with Paula Dean's Baked Acorn Squash with <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301265217_4">Brown Sugar</span> and Butter - it's like having your vegetables for dessert! Also, I've loved Olga's Kitchen's spinach pie since I was a child, so I busted out the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301265217_5">phyllo dough</span> again and made Emeril's spanikopita. It has a more pungent flavor, more authentic than Olga's, and it's one of the simplest recipes for spanikopita I've found. I just devoured them! I also tried a recipe for spaghetti squash, which was pretty good and can be easily tweaked. The trick was just getting the knife out of the squash after my initial stab into it - I feel like someone should crown me king for finally getting it out! I tried out a recipe for pumpkin cake, too, and baked the batter in Caleen's awesome pumpkin-shaped mini-cake pan. They were so light and soft and moist! It was like they melted into <span style="cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301265217_6">creamy pumpkin pie</span> in your mouth!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtPs6_eRKToG8O9vg65h81XpOM_JGsa_M-Ng0a_t34hdex2OtdjwyJClkx0XyQM8oDnKhJpg9YINuCV7p1iEP76ifDfT4Bd8cn-xwMkUzUUYDvJsP2eBzQ29NARg8tooz_06syPsWQmbnj/s1600/IMG_2602.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtPs6_eRKToG8O9vg65h81XpOM_JGsa_M-Ng0a_t34hdex2OtdjwyJClkx0XyQM8oDnKhJpg9YINuCV7p1iEP76ifDfT4Bd8cn-xwMkUzUUYDvJsP2eBzQ29NARg8tooz_06syPsWQmbnj/s400/IMG_2602.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588892511774106290" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUh4gq45rvGjk-R5YIUvaDVgbmqwjmaXupnOdM4II8RqcDm2_VYOXt5E_b5stC1Qi6gh6jBqz4jfpkJqsl9kpRGGoWHe7Odf9ZUXP-iCbJPS4p57j6SptMhzB8Nfgho4jLCn7kX4N23f94/s1600/IMG_2604.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUh4gq45rvGjk-R5YIUvaDVgbmqwjmaXupnOdM4II8RqcDm2_VYOXt5E_b5stC1Qi6gh6jBqz4jfpkJqsl9kpRGGoWHe7Odf9ZUXP-iCbJPS4p57j6SptMhzB8Nfgho4jLCn7kX4N23f94/s400/IMG_2604.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588892515648674914" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRIehxhq7NjH7rC86im52x2KrA-ljuB84X0IjQdgCemQPJimvFR3ROKzGTpRzkPQCpA888yZT-rZtGCwr4NDu7T556B60ig21olvBdpfYzzxNr84oLM2AaTLTqEl0NRnhl0Z0ujVVY7PxI/s1600/IMG_2626.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRIehxhq7NjH7rC86im52x2KrA-ljuB84X0IjQdgCemQPJimvFR3ROKzGTpRzkPQCpA888yZT-rZtGCwr4NDu7T556B60ig21olvBdpfYzzxNr84oLM2AaTLTqEl0NRnhl0Z0ujVVY7PxI/s400/IMG_2626.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588892523523999922" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8aLKo9_NY4s7xJBfFfSijuAJ5qhPw0TsxW_I137sb7i_5rX8gOlUKZZxqDfQEKUjBDIPhHRh9_2WpqvY24LXlrzKRAaDd4Cl7N9vXdQBogpA_zI3ULDxQrygSltdY9cmsBjxEsa0_m9P6/s1600/IMG_2629.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8aLKo9_NY4s7xJBfFfSijuAJ5qhPw0TsxW_I137sb7i_5rX8gOlUKZZxqDfQEKUjBDIPhHRh9_2WpqvY24LXlrzKRAaDd4Cl7N9vXdQBogpA_zI3ULDxQrygSltdY9cmsBjxEsa0_m9P6/s400/IMG_2629.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588892531771781074" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju3qJojE5_qPXHBTgPkkIRW5DE7cSUzxTRx9aXZxyqb8BiigYtnOswQBkBRnUG_Y5dZp1SsDYQdkEEQp6sWGogSW1rtYXdSk_EZnhzlVtTAsSONOqPtkL1ECJl2n79XmB4ObO31qqn5uRs/s1600/IMG_2633.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju3qJojE5_qPXHBTgPkkIRW5DE7cSUzxTRx9aXZxyqb8BiigYtnOswQBkBRnUG_Y5dZp1SsDYQdkEEQp6sWGogSW1rtYXdSk_EZnhzlVtTAsSONOqPtkL1ECJl2n79XmB4ObO31qqn5uRs/s400/IMG_2633.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588893058180088418" border="0" /></a><br />This past Friday night, in order to use up leftover pumpkin and some aging apples, I made some apple-pumpkin muffins with streusel topping for Saturday's breakfast. They were fabulous! Next time I'd like to use all <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301265217_7">whole wheat flour</span>, so I can feel a leetle less guilty about eating all that sugar. ;P<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5YF9OZDUspMv2JN6zTEcbQ8_FqGyYEFk7L3ZaBDEYZBH9iGeUzouXR7ZFOcA7CYp1o3MwJjZtHFD1FpLa6mtFUG_yXVf3z1lj0zTH27S7fqK40sd8ju2yVuyqxSf127GDPM5PqeoMKGPa/s1600/IMG_2694.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5YF9OZDUspMv2JN6zTEcbQ8_FqGyYEFk7L3ZaBDEYZBH9iGeUzouXR7ZFOcA7CYp1o3MwJjZtHFD1FpLa6mtFUG_yXVf3z1lj0zTH27S7fqK40sd8ju2yVuyqxSf127GDPM5PqeoMKGPa/s400/IMG_2694.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588892542404296274" border="0" /></a><br />I apologize for not writing the last two weeks. Tyson and I have been working on compiling a ward directory with photographs, and so our Sunday time between church and choir has been absorbed doing that. Also, after ward choir from 4pm to 5pm, we've been attending the stake choir from 5pm to 6pm, which started two weeks ago. And then more often than not family comes over for dinner. But of course, with the holidays and moving both coming up, I make no promises about the future! :DSpringer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-79374390838485199032010-10-17T15:27:00.000-07:002011-03-28T08:34:57.421-07:00Scares and Snuggles and StupidityMonday and Tuesday were pretty ordinary this week. However, Wednesday Tyson came home from work early . . . while I was in the shower. You guessed it: he stealthily opened the door and flung open the shower curtain causing me to leap into the air, flinging the shampoo in my hands all over. Quite literally the most exciting part of my week . . . punk.<br /><br />Thursday I visit taught one of my sisters - she's a talker and I was there 1.5 hours! In the afternoon I went over to harass Rem and make his life miserable. A job well done, I might add. That night I made veggie pot pie for dinner, which allowed me to use up some odds and ends. It turned out beautifully, half-whole-wheat crust and all. :)<br /><br />Friday I made <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301264924_0">tomato soup</span> using tomatoes from the garden. It was pretty good, but for some inexplicable reason it has quite a spicy kick. It only has 1.5 teaspoons of pepper, two cloves of garlic, and one onion - the recipe even called for two, but we only had one. I can't figure it out.<br /><br />Anywho, after dinner we went over to the Websters to play some Beatles Rock Band. Before we go started, little Sammy toddled in wanting to give me "loves." She climbed into my lap and snuggled up for several minutes - it was just divine! We played Rock Band, ate pie, and then talked until after midnight. It was a great night.<br /><br />Yesterday I dragged Tyson out hiking near <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301264924_1">Sundance</span>. It was an exquisite day. However, when I met him after his game of ultimate frisbee, I forgot to bring the camera for him to experiment taking pictures. :( And then it cost $6 a car to get into the park - and of course we had driven separately. And after two hours of hiking through gorgeous fall colors - to a waterfall and back - I realized that I had locked my keys in my car. After trying to figure out a solution, we finally called AAA and they wound their way into the canyon to unlock my door. :P Once we got home, we didn't do much. :) However, we did watch "<span style="cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301264924_2">The Business of Being Born</span>," which was pretty interesting and sparked some good conversation. :)<br /><br />Today I filled in for a teacher in Primary. It's definitely harder than just sitting through <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301264924_3">Sunday School</span> and <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301264924_4">Relief Society</span>, but it was also quite fun. :)<br /><br />This week Tyson came to me and said that it was time we got out on our own. At first I was a little sad because I really love the people here. But almost immediately I was elated at the thought of having our own home again! So, we're looking at apartments again, and Tyson is filling out the paperwork to make it so that our monthly combined student loan payments aren't more than 15% of our income (right now they're over 34% of our gross income). Of course, it will still be tight, and we'll have to budget even more carefully, but I'm really happy about it. :)<br /><br />That's it for this week!Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-83234544547458254102010-10-10T23:47:00.000-07:002011-03-27T15:28:33.451-07:0010-10-10This week I discovered chocolate-covered peanut butter bars. They're my kryptonite. I'm never allowed to make them again.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuBUZmREZ77uzmBXPGCX74gp3xOYX-X2-atX-6qh5aUUTwHK6Rb3qhyphenhyphenLEMeTLj5F9msElcfO2V_ekDRTNsm4dCG2YYxjXS9czqgsbluqcTaFGdqD204ZkiPENK95g6CqW0V5TP7F2vU5yr/s1600/PB+Bars.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuBUZmREZ77uzmBXPGCX74gp3xOYX-X2-atX-6qh5aUUTwHK6Rb3qhyphenhyphenLEMeTLj5F9msElcfO2V_ekDRTNsm4dCG2YYxjXS9czqgsbluqcTaFGdqD204ZkiPENK95g6CqW0V5TP7F2vU5yr/s400/PB+Bars.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588889662163709810" border="0" /></a><br />Aside from that, it was a pretty uneventful week. However, we've had little thunderstorms all week, and one in particular turned into a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301264612_0">hail storm</span>, which was pretty fun to see. :)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN3-cnWQZsJbe1c0Z7bP_iDDRcL95ZZPKN9kiEvqg_0UiAHFqyF7SyQVFiVFq3mvMgfIgBkgBN2qbWEAkmwNAT4M4M5GOyUMrB8RvqbC3q-cCBAdvt1NblVpbaYTxGupbS9CWbwzCkSjZg/s1600/Hailstorm.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN3-cnWQZsJbe1c0Z7bP_iDDRcL95ZZPKN9kiEvqg_0UiAHFqyF7SyQVFiVFq3mvMgfIgBkgBN2qbWEAkmwNAT4M4M5GOyUMrB8RvqbC3q-cCBAdvt1NblVpbaYTxGupbS9CWbwzCkSjZg/s400/Hailstorm.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588889655331619266" border="0" /></a><br />Yesterday was the most eventful. It was our Relief Society's Super Saturday. The first few hours were a bunch of crafts, none of which really interested me, so I didn't stick around for that. However, I did come in time for the cupcake demo, which was pretty fun. I also coordinated the soups and rolls, and even brought a pot of creamy carrot ginger soup, since I was afraid we'd be shy one pot (we weren't and I took almost all of it home - lol!). And, of course, since I'm on the committee I helped with set up and take down. :)<br /><br />While we were eating our soup, one of the sisters gave a "re-purposing demo." She's an amazing seamstress, and was cutting up (freehand) old sweaters to turn them into cute clothes for her grandkids while she was talking to us. Then she showed this old printer paper box that she'd covered with coordinating <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301264612_1">scrapbook paper</span>, and cut out the word "RIBBON" on it. That was plenty crafty and creative for me, but she also attached a dowel inside to put through the spools of ribbon, and she was going to put grommets on one side to pull the ribbon through, so you won't even have to open the box. She also used an old leather belt and somehow (I have to assume magic) turned them into snazzy-looking handles on the sides. How does she think of these things??? I was very impressed. :)<br /><br />Right after that, I finally went to see Tyson's friend Raylene and got my hair trimmed. I've been too scarred since having it butchered last November (Raylene fixed it for me then, too), to have scissors go near it again. :P She also straightened it for me, which has been really fun - I can wear hats and cool headbands and have them look good! :)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx9H7Y064wv-4Rh1VOz4dOmKIo71ZAQ09UpbizUAL78cDGuos3wUXGaH6PsDb9IGXMt1XS2bJW2rFQ2BCkPQg0NvQN3elsikNzb7scwRuf02aZ4a7mW3i4xP60CWvUDUdaKnr2KPy6nF9x/s1600/I+Like+Straight+Hair.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx9H7Y064wv-4Rh1VOz4dOmKIo71ZAQ09UpbizUAL78cDGuos3wUXGaH6PsDb9IGXMt1XS2bJW2rFQ2BCkPQg0NvQN3elsikNzb7scwRuf02aZ4a7mW3i4xP60CWvUDUdaKnr2KPy6nF9x/s400/I+Like+Straight+Hair.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588889658391632962" border="0" /></a><br />Hm . . . yep. I think that's it!Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-19666561744324031522010-10-03T22:08:00.000-07:002011-03-27T15:16:39.643-07:00General Conference Weekend! :DIt has been sunny and in the 80s all week here in "Zion." ;) Before you get too jealous, though, it rained briefly tonight and we're supposed to have scattered thunderstorms all this week, with highs ending up all the way in the low 60s by Saturday. Yeah, I don't think I want to move back to Michigan anytime soon. ;)<br /><br />Monday the big thing was finally using Wednesday's berries and making blackberry and tripleberry pies. I was having a "bad <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263787_0">pie crust</span> day," so they weren't too cute, but they tasted the same. :) I also made pinwheels out of the leftover dough - Thanks, Jeremy, for that useful and tasty little tip! <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxXjDJxJvG8zkSFR16nuOQGdPjxIGodkZtiysJl9oVET5Yo4CquAwvY1ygc1RHQ-IsXwzOg8zQEZ7DpjglnVlLZAzg7vYdVgVlNjZst-BpS2UEtUSKBui8_BgkKRFHi2jJQzUOUGB5XcWW/s1600/Blackberry+Pie.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxXjDJxJvG8zkSFR16nuOQGdPjxIGodkZtiysJl9oVET5Yo4CquAwvY1ygc1RHQ-IsXwzOg8zQEZ7DpjglnVlLZAzg7vYdVgVlNjZst-BpS2UEtUSKBui8_BgkKRFHi2jJQzUOUGB5XcWW/s400/Blackberry+Pie.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588886217773876146" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOztk2kBPROr0Dw3k9m0nqOFU6miwb4ILYJ4LXJsFriQsI0tPV453pLxqz5HfCNVAAV_JF1mQ5DIasJ9KvvjE8zifEpjueRiSEBUEBr-t_BouqjHIZVqjUBncbEW2k6mpu8tt2iFiQqfKg/s1600/Tripleberry+Pie.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOztk2kBPROr0Dw3k9m0nqOFU6miwb4ILYJ4LXJsFriQsI0tPV453pLxqz5HfCNVAAV_JF1mQ5DIasJ9KvvjE8zifEpjueRiSEBUEBr-t_BouqjHIZVqjUBncbEW2k6mpu8tt2iFiQqfKg/s400/Tripleberry+Pie.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588886246925423778" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE1e1x49jyKrnZpsVxklZJ4zwlHEbch3NG75S8lUm5WooybFsOZ7AsNs-ZbtBL7-50g85h8NBvYB9I7yv0dY7x5SfYm6d_AvaNPH11inUl8hP-WFzM6Q1d9gJ9ik4YnzMIX0nPGFJEg8Wx/s1600/Pie+Dough+Pinwheels.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE1e1x49jyKrnZpsVxklZJ4zwlHEbch3NG75S8lUm5WooybFsOZ7AsNs-ZbtBL7-50g85h8NBvYB9I7yv0dY7x5SfYm6d_AvaNPH11inUl8hP-WFzM6Q1d9gJ9ik4YnzMIX0nPGFJEg8Wx/s400/Pie+Dough+Pinwheels.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588886226849038514" border="0" /></a><br />That night I also made beans and rice for the second time. Yeah, I know, "Beans and rice. Woo-hoo." But this recipe is GOOD, and I sprinkle just a little cheese on top of mine and I love it! Tyson and I decided to try incorporating it on a regular basis, since it's a really inexpensive meal and it's so healthy. Definitely a good idea. :)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj75ZCvTSO1vzEMvF6VgzzUpShj8XACCNEu6MZGrqaqt-EQMbJ_Vy7gRQ8C4OP1Bts0-M8boLdU7-dtxsgxS8ChZVvpc09xhewVmqX8cDRF1Ixu8gg_vGCn25ncIF-t6el616RWkbRWQ1Z/s1600/Rice+and+Beans.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj75ZCvTSO1vzEMvF6VgzzUpShj8XACCNEu6MZGrqaqt-EQMbJ_Vy7gRQ8C4OP1Bts0-M8boLdU7-dtxsgxS8ChZVvpc09xhewVmqX8cDRF1Ixu8gg_vGCn25ncIF-t6el616RWkbRWQ1Z/s400/Rice+and+Beans.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588886237016425426" border="0" /></a><br />Tuesday was uneventful once again. I tried a new recipe of farfalle pasta with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263787_1">cream cheese</span>, asparagus, mushrooms, and walnuts. Sounded great, but it was just "fine." Edible, but nothing exciting.<br /><br />Here's an insight into my little psyche: Wednesday morning I dreamed that Remick was shot and killed. Dad and I caught the culprit and were keeping him until authorities arrived. I tried talking to him, but didn't get anywhere because I was being too nice. Then dad was going to "go all <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263787_2">Jack Bauer</span> on him," if you will. That thought was too disturbing, so even though I was trying to leave having to watch it, my brain changed the scene. Connie was suddenly there and the perpetrator was a fluffy white puppy! LOL. She stayed with me and the puppy, still waiting for the authorities, and I realized how soft and adorable and sweet it was. Then I realized that Remick "really" was dead. I reeled as agonizing grief and pain and loss instantly washed over me. And then I woke up. Sheesh!<br /><br />After that lovely start, I went grocery shopping, and then made chocolate covered cherry brownies to bring to the block party that night. After they cooled and I could take them out and reuse the pan, I tried a recipe for "Easy <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263787_3">Apple Cake</span>." Sorry, but peeling, coring, and dicing three apples does <span style="font-style:italic;">not</span> count as easy. :P It also had chopped walnuts and dates, which I bought that way - no extra chopping! After you bake the cake, you skewer it repeatedly. Then you bring <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263787_4">brown sugar</span>, butter, and milk just to a boil and pour it over the cake and let it sit and soak in. Oh, yeah. It's as good as it sounds. :D And it was too hot to take when the block party started, so we ended up eating it all by ourselves. Oops!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAifHh0P3eWWxQhx3cxSSLD7QQFA2YL2iIeUn9bk3Je4DbzLb52m9hUMFQ4A5nJKtHGOJrdhxvpvqEKKegptc-pEF39Pyo8O_ndVKpKjCA-H1WeR8Qv_hfUWkYuKLO_EezrDpK8VUqUyKU/s1600/Slice+of+Apple+Cale.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAifHh0P3eWWxQhx3cxSSLD7QQFA2YL2iIeUn9bk3Je4DbzLb52m9hUMFQ4A5nJKtHGOJrdhxvpvqEKKegptc-pEF39Pyo8O_ndVKpKjCA-H1WeR8Qv_hfUWkYuKLO_EezrDpK8VUqUyKU/s400/Slice+of+Apple+Cale.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588886245862910450" border="0" /></a><br />For the block party, we sat on a front lawn and basically just ate and chatted with our neighbors. Nothing fancy, but it was nice to see and talk with the wonderful people we have around us. :)<br /><br />Thursday and Friday were both pretty uneventful.<br /><br />And yesterday and today was General Conference! :) There were so many wonderful and inspiring talks, I can't wait until I can read them again. ('Specially 'cause I was going on five hours of sleep yesterday. ;P) One of my favorite quotes was given by Elder Richard G. Scott: "We become what we want to be by consistently being what we want to become each day." I've got to put that on my wall. :)<br /><br />After Saturday's Conference sessions, Tyson and I caught the end of the Wolverines-Hoosiers game. It was AWESOME!!! Go Blue!! Then he and his dad and his brother Parker went to the Priesthood session - and brought home doughnuts afterward. :D And today was just more wonderful Conference. :)Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-18786235759997386352010-09-26T20:47:00.000-07:002011-03-27T15:09:27.069-07:00Molly Mormon Week: Canning, Cooking and Relief SocietyThis week was pretty full. On Monday I made two pints of raspberry preserves and four pints of peach butter - and even canned them all by myself. (I am so proud!) I also made tasty little peach muffins (They were especially good with some peach butter on them!), but I waited for Caleen to get home before I started on the pear butter. Coring, peeling and chopping peaches should never be a one-person job! :) So, we made the four pints of pear butter together - which tastes surprisingly like applesauce. :) <span style="font-style:italic;">Not</span> surprisingly, I didn't get much else done that day. ;P<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2SmLOUYtaPdQiHhEq0Eim5tEBXuBASXnjcvKL8VvfJbXqDrblG8hcdBJln8yUudpM_yrW9qHQsM07drX5KhcAOSvsGgnQumfwCx8Xu-gMdhJ2SvkZ2KofFz21iCL8QJ1UKK8S63-lMfS7/s1600/IMG_2531.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2SmLOUYtaPdQiHhEq0Eim5tEBXuBASXnjcvKL8VvfJbXqDrblG8hcdBJln8yUudpM_yrW9qHQsM07drX5KhcAOSvsGgnQumfwCx8Xu-gMdhJ2SvkZ2KofFz21iCL8QJ1UKK8S63-lMfS7/s400/IMG_2531.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588884313761923682" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQp2quPknBhZqDOfYsQ-mDcmVIoqImhfGwTMPyK1NBFG6boj0BpNTI7i7pfN8n78rEMxyq4hek-qshBQ67SWv18cZbRMGbTkDiNEVfGlciTQH7HkdPUfSHDsTFHWZHeuWDKe2iHASDa476/s1600/IMG_2534.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQp2quPknBhZqDOfYsQ-mDcmVIoqImhfGwTMPyK1NBFG6boj0BpNTI7i7pfN8n78rEMxyq4hek-qshBQ67SWv18cZbRMGbTkDiNEVfGlciTQH7HkdPUfSHDsTFHWZHeuWDKe2iHASDa476/s400/IMG_2534.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588884308597376546" border="0" /></a><br />Tuesday was pretty normal. The biggest thing I did that day was pick three eggplants from the garden; peel, slice, bread, and bake them. Then I layered them in a 9"x13" dish smothered with Prego and mozzarella and parmesan for a big "family style" eggplant parmesan. It's one of my favorite dishes, and it uses more eggplant than any other recipe I know. :D<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0vLtyJt2BnaV7I6hevEbU0J0Nt20kvl1sE32BIYDvrDL9RefSwy8Row9bxvYsseYUQ5A6Pgj_ci1k201CMHjcbePMwRMDzfcCZd3MmRGgVWDBaP7hMBwN2d2RlUDn4HjAVVqLftsdIU1r/s1600/IMG_2536.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0vLtyJt2BnaV7I6hevEbU0J0Nt20kvl1sE32BIYDvrDL9RefSwy8Row9bxvYsseYUQ5A6Pgj_ci1k201CMHjcbePMwRMDzfcCZd3MmRGgVWDBaP7hMBwN2d2RlUDn4HjAVVqLftsdIU1r/s400/IMG_2536.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588884320500900994" border="0" /></a><br />Wednesday Caleen and I picked blackberries and raspberries again. We started earlier in the evening, and the yellow jackets were more alert this time, but became almost comatose as the evening waned. So interesting! It was really a lovely evening, too, with a warm sun, cool wind, mountains on one side, and a farm-filled valley on the other.<br /><br />Thursday I tried a new pasta dish with sage, tomatoes, and <span style="cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263306_0">cannellini beans</span>. Unfortunately, I cooked it too long and it got somewhat burnt. I was pretty sad until I tasted one of the more burnt parts. The tomatoes had magically become tangy sun-dried tomatoes, and their skins, as well as the beans', had become caramelized. Sweet! We ate a decent dinner after all!<br /><br />Friday I tried to make something special for dinner. I baked Lion House rolls, roasted <span style="cursor: pointer; background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% transparent;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263306_1">butternut squash</span>, and prepared phyllo-wrapped asparagus. The rolls turned out prettier than they have yet - which isn't say much! LOL! The squash was a flop, since it just wouldn't get soft. However, I wrangled the speed-thawed, canola-sprayed and parmesan-sprinkled <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263306_2">phyllo dough</span> around the asparagus, baked it, and LOVED it! (Yummy food dance!) It's now one of my new favorite things! Thank you <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263306_3">Paula Deen</span>! :D<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM9PUlk0hKzMPbZXe9EvhNrwCM5dhppaF0b37XQbcF6AXw__kw23QEtYsoEk_gPzbiqymfY1YPS3CJw5_Fo26K8CIjdNphdQL_vdqHdU9C-iVXJWM6k8FYVvZdZ_cTgXvkJ9eWuC_5Yhb7/s1600/Picture+025.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM9PUlk0hKzMPbZXe9EvhNrwCM5dhppaF0b37XQbcF6AXw__kw23QEtYsoEk_gPzbiqymfY1YPS3CJw5_Fo26K8CIjdNphdQL_vdqHdU9C-iVXJWM6k8FYVvZdZ_cTgXvkJ9eWuC_5Yhb7/s400/Picture+025.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588884334505976802" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoWeg0IhuS-23tjMFK_S1M3BPWyl29HrtYXKUJFsI15BSvhxbWFmMDsHvmm3XIdjedFuiT8ChnmrUlZf2R6tX-zCOj3XvTshWg_TTIsXUZIZKplK3Ioft6k46TdnovVITjy1pmjlGg_Zxa/s1600/Picture+028.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoWeg0IhuS-23tjMFK_S1M3BPWyl29HrtYXKUJFsI15BSvhxbWFmMDsHvmm3XIdjedFuiT8ChnmrUlZf2R6tX-zCOj3XvTshWg_TTIsXUZIZKplK3Ioft6k46TdnovVITjy1pmjlGg_Zxa/s400/Picture+028.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588884338231220818" border="0" /></a><br />Yesterday Tyson went to an Ultimate Frisbee tournament up in Logan. He left at 5:30 in the morning, and didn't get home until some time in the evening, then found the energy to go to a friend's house and watch the recorded BYU football game! :) I think he may have overexerted himself, though, because he's feeling a little under the weather today. :(<br /><br />It was also the <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263306_4">Relief Society</span> General Meeting broadcast from the conference center in <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263306_5">Salt Lake</span>. Our ward was given tickets, so a dozen of us met at 3:30 and drove up in two vehicles together. After the broadcast, we ate dinner together at the <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301263306_6">Olive Garden</span>. I finally got home around 11pm, but I had so much fun spending time talking and laughing with the sisters. :)<br /><br />Not much has happened today. We went over to the Dixons' house and they explained to us everything about being ward historians. Then I went to the first choir practice since the summer. Now I'm going to see if I can squeeze in some blackberry pie-making tonight.<br /><br />Oh, I did want to share last week that I came down from the stand during sacrament meeting to sit next to Tyson. Little Sammy Webster - who we used to have in Nursery with us until we split it by age - was sitting with her family right across the aisle from us. Out of the blue she toddled over and gave me a big sweet hug. It just made my day!! :DSpringer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-35668313436579940002010-09-23T20:08:00.000-07:002010-09-23T20:59:09.456-07:00Head Shots<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLoIb6Ly-jUcilSZvbj6GwHh4p3TaHwVoX2ZibjPRNiti32sYvH64If4PtBgGIe797kPOTTYKy9IJlX2LWwLdyFYyQhLhdLeivrkQD1bQvwWq6tigBTSgV6_pd9LEUrGZA6k7LP39gIIhZ/s1600/Springer+1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 600px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLoIb6Ly-jUcilSZvbj6GwHh4p3TaHwVoX2ZibjPRNiti32sYvH64If4PtBgGIe797kPOTTYKy9IJlX2LWwLdyFYyQhLhdLeivrkQD1bQvwWq6tigBTSgV6_pd9LEUrGZA6k7LP39gIIhZ/s400/Springer+1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520312483948422514" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>I'm starting to do more portraiture in my spare time and I've started with my wife and family, since they'll do anything I want, lol. Just a few for now, but there's more to come!</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQcwfnLZMu_CzIgBhwNOmtnQR1I8oj1w_hTL7bnNM2YYoqmE86f9x_YhCwf5CgBf7IyzJAWpiiQrJt67MZafpYxeNz2A_byd0b6Pzh9VEQiVCkNWuLZM2B7qGoXXKCxBifCASJart3vIzy/s400/Dallas1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520314222332775538" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4VDLzoFCEWWEfjAYrWHnzevXGcFvnmeEf7j_D94qs_PhYjHFbUwF-SoxJcZKd8UtDIlB5ZAq83b0E4XCfcLRqKnd_shqY9kAtYR7WCzWAc0m0lkFYPoMdLJOgjJt1ZxUL-1ED6kW-wi-Z/s400/Make+a+Wish.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520322716679234210" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 265px; " /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><br /></span></span></div>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-50268461906162089032010-09-19T21:40:00.000-07:002011-03-27T15:01:21.215-07:00Mice, yellow jackets and aphids<span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >My days are filled with working on Tyson's website (<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://www.architecturelinked.com/"><span style="color:blue;">www.architecturelinked.com</span></a>), cooking dinners, doing dishes, running errands, working out, practicing the guitar, and the other necessities of life. Here are some semi-adventures I've had this past week.<br /><br />Monday I started my day by running some errands, starting in Orem and working my way back south: WinCo, Best in Music, Robert's Crafts, and then <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301262745_0">Deseret Industries</span>. WinCo is a fairly new store in half a dozen states out west. They don't take credit cards, which helps them to have wonderfully low prices. It's a good half hour north of us, but I'm going to have to get up there more often. Anyway, I bought a few bulk foods there, and when I came home I went down into the cold storage to add my bags to the cardboard box-full that I keep on a plastic 5-gallon drum. As I picked up some of the older bags, I noticed that they kept spilling. Finally I saw it: a hole <i>chewed</i> in the bag. I took my box upstairs and discovered that mice (I think) had chewed through about half my bags - and had totally emptied my bag of golden flax seed. Apparently that was there favorite! So, before I filled my hungry belly with lunch, I spent about an hour moving foods into glass and plastic jars. We've opened the food storage door so that the cats can go in, and I've kept my box in a corner on the counter top upstairs since. :P<br /><br />Tuesday was pretty uneventful.<br /><br />Wednesday evening Caleen and I went berry picking. There were yellow jackets hanging out all over the raspberry bushes, and we had to be careful to pick berries instead of bugs. The really cool part, though, was it appeared that the yellow jackets had held an Ann Arbor-esque "hash bash" before we arrived, because they were SO mellow. We could pick right next to where they were perched, shaking the branch in the process, and they just stayed put. We even accidentally knocked a few to the ground, and they just stayed there looking confused. We have an appointment to go picking again this Wednesday, so let's hope they're still so calm! :)<br /><br />Thursday I was making broccoli casserole for dinner, and went out to the garden to see if there was any fresh broccoli I could use. At first I was excited, because there was a lot of fresh broccoli, but then I realized that it was infected with tiny gray bugs. The very same bugs I unwittingly munched with some organic broccoli many years ago. Spew!!! Seeing them again really gave me the willies! Thankfully I had bought enough broccoli from the store, so I used that instead. :)<br /><br />Friday night I made chickpea patties with tahini yogurt sauce and steamed artichokes just for Tyson and for myself for dinner. Afterward I scouted out a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301262745_1">Martha Stewart recipe</span> for raspberry scones. I doubled the sugar, and my dough turned out too soft and sticky, but I feel it worked out for the best. The scones were perfectly moist and slightly sweet, and made a good Saturday breakfast, too. :)<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid4knHoLpEM0VFSsJtbTp6PiNOwUxEkaWMWJfuYpemQVVTItmjjncUI53pobe7TRGjGhoXE15hQVlOtLdKd3Zg_4PXmoIECHU78OWikNQbm1KOVBQaWjhmFwQ2SFEt2GJHVRmdfL0D37Jq/s1600/IMG_2520b.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid4knHoLpEM0VFSsJtbTp6PiNOwUxEkaWMWJfuYpemQVVTItmjjncUI53pobe7TRGjGhoXE15hQVlOtLdKd3Zg_4PXmoIECHU78OWikNQbm1KOVBQaWjhmFwQ2SFEt2GJHVRmdfL0D37Jq/s400/IMG_2520b.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588882061447438226" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWWy9Qq1Gi9imW6tNMI5zrmXH2ftLmLpTW15K5Bf9wznZaA4lO7WhZijHmO2NwtiM9OKIO8pQ8W9rXmfuWStviZdSclc63MAe02n5eCUbxzsA9Ona8NF2b9tq-vED8precKnCbv1M-0_b3/s1600/IMG_2523.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWWy9Qq1Gi9imW6tNMI5zrmXH2ftLmLpTW15K5Bf9wznZaA4lO7WhZijHmO2NwtiM9OKIO8pQ8W9rXmfuWStviZdSclc63MAe02n5eCUbxzsA9Ona8NF2b9tq-vED8precKnCbv1M-0_b3/s400/IMG_2523.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588882550124258114" border="0" /></a><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br />Yesterday Caleen went on a canning spree. Her mother came over, and the two of us peeled pears and peaches while Caleen hurried around doing everything else necessary to can them. I think she ended up with roughly 12 quarts of each. But she didn't stop there, later she made three quarts of a roasted garlic Roma tomato sauce, and roughly a dozen half-pints of tripleberry freezer jam. With what's left we still want to make raspberry preserves, and pear and peach butters. (Side note: I have discovered that I LOOOVE fruit butters!)<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxY4GhgcYnux8aYS7q2-uYPTnBo86WcGayNU0AYkVgGHkhrSQods6HVZPtFotsBqth2VEAggtpq5aCE4ZAh9Z8AJuUFnUPmOCoq-gmC2m_pJH9N6SgcsHFAb4OCeM6T35BbCvbWmLz4pBt/s1600/IMG_2526.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxY4GhgcYnux8aYS7q2-uYPTnBo86WcGayNU0AYkVgGHkhrSQods6HVZPtFotsBqth2VEAggtpq5aCE4ZAh9Z8AJuUFnUPmOCoq-gmC2m_pJH9N6SgcsHFAb4OCeM6T35BbCvbWmLz4pBt/s400/IMG_2526.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588882556642083106" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Today I was sustained in church as a member of the Enrichment meeting committee. That plus ward chorister, plus activities committee member, plus a ward historian makes four callings! I thought that in Utah there were so many active church members that I'd have to beg for just one calling! I guess not! :)<br /><br />So, I've realized how often I encountered vermin this week. I hope reading about them didn't BUG you! Ha ha . . . ha . . . yeah.</span>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-41727383392794806522010-07-29T22:06:00.000-07:002011-03-27T14:51:33.202-07:00Another WeekLast Wednesday Rem came over and hung out and we made mom's "Tofu Fudge Chew" <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301262412_0">cookie recipe</span>. Because I had thought the recipe called for more than 1/2 lb of tofu, I bought 2 1/2 lbs . . <span style="font-style:italic;">and</span> we decided to use it all. So, we quintupled the recipe. That's a LOT of cookies! We used 15 cups of flour!!! There's still a large container of dough in the fridge that's in the garage. :P I think the sisters I visit teach are going to get some plates of chocolate cookies soon. :)<br /><br />The next evening my left knee suddenly swelled and got super stiff. I've been hobbling around for days as it has <span style="font-style:italic;">slowly</span> gone down. It made Nursery on Sunday an extra adventure, too! Best of all, my left knee is my "good" knee. LOL! At least, this appears to be exactly what happened to my right knee in October 2008. So I think that if I can just be still long enough, it will heal . . . yeah, I know that's a pretty big "if." ;)<br /><br />On Friday Mike and Caleen took all their kids and families to the rodeo here in Spanish Fork. They took us last year, too, and it is surprisingly fun. :D The bull riding still makes me nervous!<br /><br />Yesterday I went to the Bella Natal <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301262412_1">birthing center</span> in Orem. (No news yet, just want to be prepared and informed.) They have two beautiful rooms with waiting areas and kitchen areas and bathrooms with huge pipe-less jetted bath tubs! I really like the midwife who spoke with me, too. All three of them work together interchangeably, so you'll get to know all three, and you're guaranteed someone you know well will be able to be at your birth, which I really liked. However, she also said that if labor stalls (for, say, 6 hours, she said) they would come to a "mutual decision" with the mother to send her to the nearby hospital and induce her labor. I know they wouldn't make me go, but I'd hate to have that kind of pressure when I'm already exhausted and frustrated. What do you moms think?<br /><br />And once again, I'm proud of myself in the culinary department. Monday I made french bread from scratch, then heated some minced garlic and herbs in olive oil and made it into <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1301262412_2">garlic bread</span>. Yummy! Also, last night I made my first pesto from scratch - I even cut the basil from the garden - and my first granola from scratch. I'm so happy when new recipes work out! :D<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAtt4t1pKTKtP69ScDtCITawD9IjFB_Q0F5OhQrM7tax1OpKmlunA6Bk1-a4FEW-WKicURkecDt3NkwwSpMpqYGcIOj8JCuK0i36CcMS0cyBPdtRIGf4YVFN3Wfrca0we3SAdT_oixnm0V/s1600/IMG_2487.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAtt4t1pKTKtP69ScDtCITawD9IjFB_Q0F5OhQrM7tax1OpKmlunA6Bk1-a4FEW-WKicURkecDt3NkwwSpMpqYGcIOj8JCuK0i36CcMS0cyBPdtRIGf4YVFN3Wfrca0we3SAdT_oixnm0V/s400/IMG_2487.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588880331626582466" border="0" /></a>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-17823025066930906242010-07-12T21:28:00.000-07:002010-12-26T19:02:06.895-08:00Weekly EmailsI'm going to start copying my weekly family emails here in case anyone still looks here and would like to know what's been going on in our lives. ;)<br /><br />So, the big news for this week is that I, Rem, and Amelia bought our plane tickets to come out to Michigan next month. We all take the same flight out on Wednesday the 18th and land around 2:30 that day. Rem and Amelia then stay for a week, and I stay for two (Woo-hoo!). We are all so excited for Drey and Joanne's wedding!<br /><br />Tyson applied for two jobs this week: one in <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1293418790_0">Seattle</span> and one in <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1293418790_1">Kansas City</span>. He has a phone interview on the 19th with the firm in Seattle. I do NOT like rain and clouds. :P I DO love the sunny dry weather here in <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1293418790_2">Utah</span>. :D Nevertheless, I pray that he gets the job. It would allow him to get in all his hours towards becoming certified, and he could maybe move up in the company, too, since it's an architecture firm and not just a construction firm. :)<br /><br />I finally used my gift card from Brett and Ricky and bought the new <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1293418790_3">Lion House</span> Bakery book. They have so many yummy recipes I want to try! I originally checked it out from the library and tried the french bread, and that turned out great. :) I just took orange rolls out of the oven, too, and am waiting for them to cool off to top them with glaze. They actually look quite awkward and oddly shaped, but I think they'll taste good, even if they're ugly. :D<br /><br />Friday morning I woke up early from a dream that Tyson had been killed and I was completely distraught and trying to tell my dad the news. I wasn't able to spit the words out, when I awoke feeling as if I'd been punched in the gut. Bleh! I was so grateful to be awake! Where do these dreams come from? :P<br /><br />Friday evening we had dinner in Salt Lake with Chris Schwartz, a friend from the Hill Street ward who grew up in <span style="border-bottom: 2px dotted rgb(54, 99, 136); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1293418790_4">Terre Haute</span>. He's a quirky guy, and we had a great time. :) Then Saturday evening was the ward <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1293418790_5">progressive dinner</span>. We and several other couples had appetizers at one family's house, dinner at another, and then we all coalesced into 3 (I think) larger groups for a potluck dessert. The home we were at for dessert had a volleyball net up and Rockband set up outside. Tyson played both volleyball and then drums, and I just sang and played drums. :) As we were leaving, a sister told me that I should be in a band. I laughed and told her I'd love to, if only I could play an instrument! LOL! (I love Beatles Rockband!!)<br /><br />Nothing really happened of note in Nursery yesterday, but it often does, so I'll have to keep sending emails to share the adventures as they come. :)<br /><br />That's all I can think of right now. I hope I didn't bore you all to too much, 'cause I'm gonna try to do it again next week. :DSpringer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-56735028688505163402010-04-19T11:08:00.000-07:002010-04-19T11:21:22.770-07:00Pineapple Sage and the Fish Trees(Doesn't that sound like a great title for a children's book?)<br /><br />On Saturday, Caleen took me to the tulip festival at Thanksgiving Point. It was a gorgeous day, and we had a great time taking pictures of flowers, drinking smoothies, and feeding koi. On our way out, we stopped by the greenhouse and she bought me some herbs. We picked out rosemary and thyme, since we use those quite a bit. Then we chose a "chocolate mint" plant, which, yes, smells just like mint with a faint hint of chocolate. Even cooler, though - and we bought it just for the novelty - was the "pineapple sage" plant. It smells like a sage plant that was just watered with pineapple juice. Too fun to pass up!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUR6nTlXMC2AgTUEAJ6YfLnTxoqsy2-Ew9hkvCsY1wSD702AABBc7KXed0i76IewN6znn4PtbqkaUXymdL9nwS4XlgNSpyIYc4zeaVIqVaBDHwj4RLwHyibwGLfXQ4LLWLGCQRFZxA8Hcu/s1600/IMG_2304.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUR6nTlXMC2AgTUEAJ6YfLnTxoqsy2-Ew9hkvCsY1wSD702AABBc7KXed0i76IewN6znn4PtbqkaUXymdL9nwS4XlgNSpyIYc4zeaVIqVaBDHwj4RLwHyibwGLfXQ4LLWLGCQRFZxA8Hcu/s400/IMG_2304.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461914924400248450" border="0" /></a><br />Another scent oddity grows in our front yard. Several times now I've stepped out of my car and smelled fish. The smell passed quickly as I took a few steps toward the house. I eventually figured out that the off-putting smell was emanating from the blossoms of the lovely flowering trees planted by the street. Go figure!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5UcpGYQa852NjDfB7pI6jg0GMIwQXFTuGhY6sGV_JrA8LKd7AEQ75IyZwSyVNXQJiIZRBDViHd3CdLttR7Kd-Ut1WpyBAId76Dckrn_p_7RRjc9CgE3u621-D-yfycnovnU0bv3IZ4bFJ/s1600/IMG_2305.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5UcpGYQa852NjDfB7pI6jg0GMIwQXFTuGhY6sGV_JrA8LKd7AEQ75IyZwSyVNXQJiIZRBDViHd3CdLttR7Kd-Ut1WpyBAId76Dckrn_p_7RRjc9CgE3u621-D-yfycnovnU0bv3IZ4bFJ/s400/IMG_2305.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461914935198707442" border="0" /></a>Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2340057008675752022.post-5624518116260431942010-04-05T21:09:00.000-07:002010-04-05T21:36:38.680-07:00Easter in UtahIt got up to 70 degrees this week. The weather has really been delightful lately. You can imagine, then, my surprise when mother nature played a little April Fool's joke on us all on Thursday.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcHOkKA2XjlatEqcNn0cBJx1MCHxztGIZMMtpsI4pTsPYL3kwR4SUPvjIcrxDchbnP-k1XB1JH0t2mpHueI1uqF-C5cMyXSG96bDJrAFCZnM_oPIV0LlCUwZXdMB-bMhSBAZKsEkvMpgpc/s1600/IMG_2234.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcHOkKA2XjlatEqcNn0cBJx1MCHxztGIZMMtpsI4pTsPYL3kwR4SUPvjIcrxDchbnP-k1XB1JH0t2mpHueI1uqF-C5cMyXSG96bDJrAFCZnM_oPIV0LlCUwZXdMB-bMhSBAZKsEkvMpgpc/s400/IMG_2234.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456872089495194994" border="0" /></a>Thankfully, the snow melts relatively quickly here and the ground was clear the next day. However, Easter had yet to be celebrated. On Easter morning we woke up to basically the same thing.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNxPA8y3X3bkBvJ4y3Zgw8Rze4w_3ZSRpJpwU0LqR3xZe_JTzd2-ngxp1YzPF91T9zsvSXArba8P-Y8WD84U_mCn8YxiUbPvzENqFCmZPpMThQYkyfpArdKT6Cp0fqV5lL4iPBLZqF2anw/s1600/IMG_2254.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNxPA8y3X3bkBvJ4y3Zgw8Rze4w_3ZSRpJpwU0LqR3xZe_JTzd2-ngxp1YzPF91T9zsvSXArba8P-Y8WD84U_mCn8YxiUbPvzENqFCmZPpMThQYkyfpArdKT6Cp0fqV5lL4iPBLZqF2anw/s400/IMG_2254.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456872424608535026" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxoDQBXB63TNfLnZ_kq4pNC0d9dnkVkX_Fzr8iwayZz8TJOVOdWEWFFscYX4NekRsT9Ubv1-DLDFZdIrz01s5gPFCzGQt1OpB_iUQHXDfNNBu71W6koF2Is3hC4IXG3QZTv1vndBRwZZ96/s1600/IMG_2255.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxoDQBXB63TNfLnZ_kq4pNC0d9dnkVkX_Fzr8iwayZz8TJOVOdWEWFFscYX4NekRsT9Ubv1-DLDFZdIrz01s5gPFCzGQt1OpB_iUQHXDfNNBu71W6koF2Is3hC4IXG3QZTv1vndBRwZZ96/s400/IMG_2255.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456872437431817778" border="0" /></a>It's going to continue to snow for the next few days (it's coming down again as I type, actually). Spring is then scheduled to prevail.<br /><br />Snow wasn't the only thing that was white and fluffy on Easter Sunday. I know you're all thinking about the Eater Bunny, but I'm referring to my first time making a coconut cake. As I initially looked for recipes on allrecipes.com, all I could find were variations on, "Buy a cake mix. Add coconut." I wanted to actually <span style="font-style: italic;">make</span> the cake, so I looked on foodnetwork.com, and found Alton Brown's recipe, which started with, "Buy a coconut. Drain and reserve the water." Holy smokes! Isn't there something between lazy and insane??? Thankfully, I finally found Paula Dean's coconut cake recipe. :)<br /><br />I thought it was really a cool recipe. I made a basic cake, but substituted coconut milk for regular milk. Then I made a filling of sorts out of sugar, sour cream, and shredded coconut which seeped into the cake layers overnight. Then I topped it with "7-minute frosting," which I'd never made before, and I think it has the <span style="font-style: italic;">coolest</span> texture - reminiscent of marshmallow cream, only super glossy. Then I carefully pressed shredded coconut into the frosted cake. I have to say, I am very proud of the results.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6AHtqyhGCSU7IrZYsgtttf_W5mGtBNB7GrPk6CDXCx3VSLJ1TM4g0NU3xm1FT8_0i17VfILrQo-e3U-2iiQdnjwTeNf1xtQj78Hudna48qXcAZ5nsGQNa3fRJMDv0wHHzj5tHhNumf_Qj/s1600/Coconut+Cake+1.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 306px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6AHtqyhGCSU7IrZYsgtttf_W5mGtBNB7GrPk6CDXCx3VSLJ1TM4g0NU3xm1FT8_0i17VfILrQo-e3U-2iiQdnjwTeNf1xtQj78Hudna48qXcAZ5nsGQNa3fRJMDv0wHHzj5tHhNumf_Qj/s400/Coconut+Cake+1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456875037907950738" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKWyoRcekmZtsDpkr9TybScckpWPUIUnhpVKXBZXot4z0diAek4M9pbgu6eYEG05-9dSHpWE77gONSTRBCvspF8JLOcLCuCD5pBppH03Gr9mAK3CT04O5xu_QA3E2T8zsNZF6t0uIfpKak/s1600/Coconut+Cake+2.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKWyoRcekmZtsDpkr9TybScckpWPUIUnhpVKXBZXot4z0diAek4M9pbgu6eYEG05-9dSHpWE77gONSTRBCvspF8JLOcLCuCD5pBppH03Gr9mAK3CT04O5xu_QA3E2T8zsNZF6t0uIfpKak/s400/Coconut+Cake+2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456875046385083378" border="0" /></a><br />The cake itself was very mild, but the filling added a moist tang, and the frosting was very sweet. It all balanced out very tastily. :) Thanks Paula!<br /><br />Of course, the best part of both Saturday and Sunday was General Conference. I took notes during all of the sessions, and I'm trying to begin incorporating some things into my life right away. It seemed to me that the majority of the talks focused around the family and the importance of teaching the gospel to children. Despite the seriousness of his subject, I laughed the hardest during Elder Holland's talk, when he reminded us that we shouldn't even be serving tea. ;) I love the Brethren so much and I'm so grateful for their teachings. <3Springer and/or Tyson (probably Springer)http://www.blogger.com/profile/15223739924505302778noreply@blogger.com2